


The Lost Ones

by DueNorthStudios2016



Series: The Lost Ones [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Action, But we'll have fun, Comedy, Demons, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst and Humor, Jack Frost - Freeform, M/M, Near Death Experiences, New Jersey, Original Character Death(s), Original Universe, Original Works - Freeform, Other, Paranormal, Past Character Death, Right?, Supernatural-Comedy series, Swearing, Updates Will Be Slow, episodic format, fictional setting, possible LGBT, sorry - Freeform, supernatural entities, witty humor
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-28
Updated: 2017-05-01
Packaged: 2018-08-27 13:14:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 4
Words: 35,568
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8403058
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DueNorthStudios2016/pseuds/DueNorthStudios2016
Summary: In the town of Point Pleasant lives a girl named Lilly. She has a wonderful life; good friends, wonderful parents, and all the woods she can explore. One day she finds a strange artifact buried in the woods. Not long after, she finds a stranger who seems more than a bit off. The next day, Lilly's life comes to an abrupt halt, and she discovers that her peaceful small town isn't so peaceful after all.
Written by Chi KushoEditted by Fibonaccithegeek





	1. Act 1, Scene 1 -- And As the Curtain Rises

**_The Lost Ones:_ **

**_Chapter I: Pilot_ **

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_ Beep! Beep! Beep! _ _   
_   
_ Smack! _   
  
A hand slammed down on the alarm clock, silencing its cries. Lilly sat up in bed, stretching. Her cat, Mittens, was disturbed from his spot on the end of her bed. He meowed tiredly and began batting the bedsheets with his paw. "Easy, tiger." The blonde girl picked him up, cradling him in her arms. "Don't waste too much energy. You still have to follow me downstairs." Mittens meowed in reply, licking her nose. His owner laughed and nuzzled him.   
  
She set Mittens down on the covers and hopped out of bed before skipping to her closet. "No school today," she said as she pulled out her sweater. "And that means no uniform." She pushed the anime-style uniform to the end of the clothes rack. Moving from the closet to the dresser, she pulled out some underwear and a pair of jeans before heading back into her closet.

  
A few minutes later, she exited the closet in her favorite dark-green sweater, the pair of denim-blue jeans, some white socks, and a dark-gray beanie she'd gotten at a local thrift store. Her bright-blonde hair hung gracefully from her shoulders. Her bangs framed her face rather nicely, parted just enough to showcase her vibrant green eyes.   
  
She grabbed her backpack, which was waiting by her bedroom door, and headed down to the kitchen, where her family was waiting. Mittens watched her go, but the second she was out the door he jumped off the bed and ran after her.   
  
"Hey, Mom." Lilly's mom, Amelia, sent her a cheerful smile. "Morning, honey! How'd you sleep?" she asked, brushing a few strands of fire-red hair out of her face. "Pretty good, thanks." Her daughter stood on her tiptoes and kissed her cheek.    
  
"Hey, Lilly!!" The blonde turned her head to see a pair of teens about her age. The boy had tan skin, brown hair, and blue-green eyes. He was dressed in a green T-shirt, a dark-blue vest, tan Khakis, and hiking boots. The girl had fair Caucasian skin, light-brown hair, freckles, and teal eyes. She wore a black-and-white hoodie, dark-red sweatpants, and black sneakers.   
  
The blonde grinned widely. "Dennis!! Abbey!!" she called back. She jogged towards the pair. "How late was I this time?" Abbey shrugged. "Not much. We've only been here for about five minutes." Her friend sighed in relief. "So," the brunette continued. She raised her eyebrows. "You ready to go find the Bunker of Death?" Lilith nodded vigorously.   
  
"Uh-uh-uh," Lilly's mom said. "You aren't going anywhere until you have some breakfast. If you die on an empty stomach, I’ll never forgive myself." Lilly pouted. "Aw, Mom! I can just get a Pop-Tart or something!"

 

"I mean  _ real _ breakfast." Amelia set down a plate of pancakes in front of her daughter. She gave a tired sigh. “Do you kids  _ really _ have to go looking for that thing?” she asked. “You’d have a better chance of seeing the Rothkiss ghost than finding a grime-filled bunker in the woods."   
  


“Of course we do, Mom!” Lilly proclaimed with a mouthful of pancakes. “As three high-schoolers living in a boring-ass town in New Jersey,” she began. “It’s our duty to do justice to our ridiculous-sounding legends by searching for them.”   
  
The aforementioned bunker was one of many crafted by the government in the event of a nuclear war. Seeing as how that was the 1950s, it was forgotten about. But there was never a specific reason as to why they called it the Bunker of "Death". One version went with death-row inmates being executed above the bunker. Another one included a serial killer who enjoyed hanging his victims, then hung himself so he wouldn't get caught. Another included the suicides that would take place in the forest every year.   
  
But to be completely honest, Lilly didn’t even know it had existed until she overheard her sullen substitute teacher talking about it. She asked him what it was, and he actually laughed. When he stopped, he filled her in on all the details. At least, all that he’d known about, which, for an urban legend, was a whole lot. Thoroughly intrigued, she grabbed her friends during lunch and told them everything she’d heard. So sparked the idea of getting together that weekend and trying to find the elusive bunker.

 

Lilly reached across the table, picking up a small bottle of syrup. "Lilith, if you must drown those pancakes with syrup, try to keep it on the plate." Dennis snickered. Abbey nudged him and muttered, "Not nice, pal."   
  
Lilith sent Dennis a death glare. “Come on, Denny.” she muttered. “You know you love syrup.” Dennis grinned sheepishly. He held up his hands. “Guilty.” he said.

 

Abbey rolled her eyes. “Syrup’s not  _ that  _ good.” Her eyes lit up. “Now  _ jam _ \--  _ that’s _ delicious.” Dennis and Lilly gave her strange looks. Abbey responded with a look mimicking their’s. Lilly’s eyebrows furrowed. “How could you?” she whispered. Dennis pointed at her and yelled “BLASPHEMER!!!”. Abbey grabbed a nearby fork at the table and held it in front of her. “I’m prepared to defend myself.”

 

“Now, wait just a minute,” Amelia turned around and shot the trio an ice-cold glare. “No free-for-alls in my kitchen. If this war has to be settled, then talk it out.” She held up the frying pan she was washing. The teenagers were silent. The woman stared at them with a mighty rage.

 

Lilly asked, “....caaaan we free-for-all  _ outside? _ ”

 

Amelia smacked her forehead. “Honestly, can’t you kids just sign a peace treaty or something?” she groaned.

 

“Of  _ course _ not!!” Lilly slammed her fist on the table. “The question-” Dennis coughed. “I mean,  _ statement _ that syrup is better than jam is something that should not be trifled with.” He imitated Lilly and slammed his fist on the table. “We must take to the streets!!”

 

“All in favor?” Lilly asked.

 

“AYE!!” her friends shouted in agreement.

 

“Then CHAAAARGE!!”

 

The trio of teenagers rocketed up from their chairs and bolted out of the kitchen, screaming like idiots. Not fifteen seconds later did Amelia hear the door slam behind them. She rolled her eyes and sighed heavily. There was a soft meow from the kitchen floor and she looked down to see her daughter’s cat.

 

She sighed. “What are we gonna do with them, Mittens?” The kitten mewled and rubbed against her leg. “Yeah, yeah. I’ll get your food in a minute.”

  
  


Meanwhile, outside the house, Lilith and her friends were snickering with delight. “D’ya think we fooled her?” Dennis asked, doing his best to stifle his giggles.

 

“Oh, hell yeah.” Lilly grinned. She picked up her backpack from its place on the ground and slung it over her shoulders. “I’ll be damned if I let breakfast stop me from finding this thing.” She pumped her fist in the air. “Let’s go find that bunker!!!”

  
  


“YEAH!!!”    
  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


  
  


"How much farther?"   
  
"Dennis, we've only been here for 45 minutes."

  
"Well, it feels like longer." 

 

The boy dragged his feet along the trail. "I'm bored!" Lilly glanced over her shoulder. "Come on, Dennis. Nobody said an urban legend would be easy to find. That’s why they’re called ‘legends’.”

 

“Touche.”

 

Dennis groaned loudly. He found a rock to sit on and plopped on his butt. “Can’t we rest for a second?” He rubbed his calfs. “My legs are killing me!!”

 

Abbey scoffed. “Oh, take it like a woman, will ya?” She sat under a nearby oak and crossed her legs. Lilly glanced at them. It seemed that she was outvoted yet again. So she followed their lead and sat on another rock. Dennis opened his backpack and fished through it. Eventually, he removed a package of trail mix. Grinning, he ripped the bag open and started to devour it.

 

“Uh…” Dennis looked up. He swallowed the food and laughed sheepishly. “Sorry, Abbey.” He held out the bag. “Want some?” Abbey wrinkled her nose. “Nah, I’m good.”

 

Lilly watched her friends with a lack of interest. She was getting pretty bored, too. But what was a little boredom compared to finding one of the creepiest legends in the entire town? Even if it  _ was  _ just a legend, it still had that mystical appeal to it.

 

She picked up a nearby stick and began tracing pictures in the dirt. One was a cat, another was a duckling, the other one made a soft  _ thunk. _ Lilly’s eyes widened a fraction. Moving the stick around like a shovel, she pushed the annoying dirt out of her way. There was a small golden chain buried within the forest floor. Her green eyes darted towards Dennis and Abbey. They were too busy arguing over the trail mix.

 

She picked it up. Examining the object, she found that it was a necklace. There was circle at the end of the chain, and there was a small inscription that she couldn’t quite make out. ‘ _ Maybe….it’s a locket!! _ ’ She attempted to pry the circle open.   
  
**_BANG!!!_ **   
  
An ear-splitting gunshot rang through the air and sent Lilly careening off the rock. “What the-” she sputtered, spitting some hair out of her mouth. "Abbey!!" she heard Dennis cry. "What's wrong?! Are you okay?!" Lilly glanced up. The brunette had fallen to the ground, her hands to her ears and her face scrunched up in a look of severe pain. Dennis was at her side, his look of fear widening when Abbey didn’t respond to his cries.

  
Another gunshot.  **_BANG!!!!_ ** **_  
_ **   
Lilly’s hands flew to her ears. Dennis’ did the same. Who in their right mind would be doing target practice in the fall? And in a forest near a neighborhood, she might add? She looked up at the sky. Amidst the gray clouds, she could make out a barrel of smoke, looking to be about a yard away from them. She yelled as another gunshot rang out, "I'm gonna find whatever's makin' that noise!!"

  
"O-okay!" Dennis stooped down, taking Abbey's hood and putting it over her head. "I-I'll stay with her! Just in case someone finds us before you do!" He picked up the fallen brunette and rested her head on his knee. Giving one last nod, Lilith turned towards the smoke cloud and ran off into the woods.   
  
Lilly found herself sprinting through the forest, her eyes glued to the sky. The smoke cloud grew larger every few steps, and the gunshots became louder and more frequent. Whoever was behind this was getting more trigger-happy the closer she got.   
  
When she finally found the source, her jaw dropped.   
  
In the clearing she played in as a child, was a huge wolf. It was the size of her parent's van, which was a Yukon. A freaking Yukon. A wolf as big as a Yukon.  _ That does not happen _ . It had pitch-black fur, red eyes, and huge teeth. It looked like something out of a Harry Potter book. And about five feet away from it was a kid. She had raven hair, braided in pigtails, pale skin, and a black-and-white baseball cap. A denim jacket hung around her shoulders and over a white T-shirt, a jean skirt, and black sneakers.    
  
And she was holding guns.   
  
Well, that's ONE mystery solved. But now Lilly had two more.   
  
1.) Where could an underage girl buy guns without a permit?   
  
2.) HOW COULD A WOLF GROW TO THE SIZE OF A YUKON?   
  
The other girl ran around the side of the wolf, who's back was arched and growling ferociously. Its front paw had been shot, because it was oozing blood. Well, she thought it was blood. It was some kind of black liquid. Was it ink? Maybe it came out of a book like the werewolf in the movie....what was it called? Whatever. Not important. But still, what if?   
  
Lilly was brought back to Earth when the wolf howled in pain. Gunslinging-Girl had fired another shot, and it hit the animal in the stomach. The wolf fell to the ground, more of the same black liquid pouring from the stomach wound. The girl walked up to it, staring down at the fallen creature with a grim expression. She slammed her foot on its face. "Rest in Hell, my friend." she said. She raised one of the pistols, aiming for the wolf's head. "May the Lord take pity on your damned soul."   
  
**_BANG!!_ **   
  
The wolf's blood stained the forest floor when the girl pulled the trigger. Lilith stared, shocked. She just blew that animal's brains out. And there she was, standing there like it was nothing! If she was that grim about animals...how would she react to humans?   
  
The blonde felt a rush of fear run through her body. ' _ I gotta get outta here. _ ' she thought. ' _ I gotta get outta here! _ '   
  
_ Snap. _   
  
The girl’s head snapped up, whipping in her direction. Her eyes went wide when she saw her. "What're you doing here?" she ordered, her tone shocked. Lilly felt her blood run cold. She had to leave. Now. This girl had guns. GUNS. She could blow Lilly's brains out if she felt like it.   
  
The girl narrowed her eyes. "I said, what're you doing here?!" she yelled, more assertive than before. That gave Lilly the kick in the pants she needed. She turned around, forgetting all the questions she wanted answered, and bolted back the way she came.

  
  


After what felt like two hours of running from a gun-crazy chick, Lilly finally got the nerve to look behind her. “Okay,” she huffed. “I should be safe-”

 

_ WHAM! _   
  
Lilly fell backwards onto the dirt. She rubbed the goose egg on her forehead, wincing. "Oww! What the hey?!"   
  
"Right back atcha, pal." Lilly jumped. "A-abbey!!" she cried. "I-i'm really sorry -- do your ears still hurt?"    
  
Abbey hissed. "No.." she groaned. "But my  _ head _ does..." 

 

Lilly sweatdropped. "Sorry..." she apologized. "I guess I wasn't thinking straight." The sound of crunching leaves reached her ears. A couple seconds later, Dennis came jogging down the path. His backpack was gone, and his choppy blonde hair was disheveled, with a stick sticking out of it. He was covered head to toe in scrapes. Abbey turned around and glared at him. "What the hell?" she said. "I thought you were right behind me." Dennis bent over and put his hands on his knees. "Raccoons...attacked me..." he panted.    
  


Abbey snorted.

  
Dennis looked up from the dirt. His face was flushed, and several drops of sweat ran down his face. "Lil, what's wrong?" he gasped, trying to catch his breath. "You-ha-you look like you saw a-ha-ghost." The brunette blinked. She turned to her friend. "Yeah, Lilly, what happened? You're whiter than Melvin Reed on a bus trip."   
  
It took Lilly a minute to register the question. Then her face paled. "W-well, I saw-" She paused. What would her friends say if she told them she saw a teenage girl blow out the brains out of something that belonged in an anime?   
  
"..I tripped over a root on my way over." she said. "And don't you dare compare me to-"

 

There was a loud roar, and a massive thud followed. Dennis stared at his friends. He gulped.

 

“We should go.”   
  


“Yeah, no _ shit. _ ” Abbey jumped back to her feet, grabbed Lilly by the arm, pulled her up, and started running out of the forest.

  
  
  


  
  


Lilly dragged herself inside the house. At the sound of the door opening, Mittens snapped his head up and bounded down the stairs. He skidded to a halt in front of Lilly and rubbed against her leg. “In the kitchen!!” came the voice of her father. Adrian Anderson was a tall young man, with jet-black locks framing his tan face. He had bright-blue eyes and a feminine physique. He acted so damn chipper some people would think he’d been deprived of oxygen when he was born.

 

Currently, Adrian was in the kitchen, over a pot of water in a girlish-looking apron, gray shirt, and blue jeans. He looked over his shoulder and smiled sweetly. “Hey, Lilly!~” he chirped. “How was the bunker hunt?” Lilly slunk into the kitchen and plopped down on the table. Her head fell onto the tabletop. James frowned. “..guess it didn’t go so well, huh?”

 

“We didn’t find anything.” the blonde groaned, her voice muffled by the wood. “And Dennis got mauled by a raccoon.” 

 

Adrian knitted his eyebrows together. “Raccoon, huh?” His forlorn expression suddenly lifted and he gave a spirited laugh. “Nickel for every time that happened.” He plunged the spoon into the boiling water and stirred the noodles around. “By the way, we’re having ramen.”

 

The word ‘ramen’ made Lilly’s head snap up. “We’re having ramen?” she asked. “Who escaped?” Adrian glanced over his shoulder. “I’ll tell you the answer…” His smirk became dark. “..once you tell me what’s in your pocket.” The blonde cocked her head. There wasn’t anything in her pocket.

 

Oh right.

 

Lilly smacked her forehead. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the trinket. “I found this in the woods.” she said, holding it up in the light. “I think it’s a necklace or something.” James turned his attention away from the pot of noodles for a few moments. “Looks kinda old,” he remarked. “Can I see that for a second?” His step-daughter nodded.

 

The raven rubbed the dirt off on his apron before running the faucet above it. He then dried it on his apron again and held it up to the light. “There,” he said. “Now you can see the writing.” He squinted at the necklace and read “ ‘To my darling Deborah.’ “ He laughed. “This  _ has _ to be old. There aren’t too many Deborahs in town anymore.”

 

He tossed the trinket to Lilly. She grasped for it, terrified whether it would fall or not. Thankfully, Mittens bounded into the kitchen and the locket landed on his head. The kitten froze, his head darting around the room in an attempt to find out what hit him. The trinket slid off his head and landed back on the floor.

 

A laugh escaped from Lilly’s throat. “Nice catch.” she said, reaching down and plucking the necklace from the floor. She examined it once again. “Doesn’t look like it’s broken..” She tried to pry it open, but to no avail. She sighed. “So,” she said, looking back at James. “Which one of us escaped again?”

 

“Your mother.” Adrian said. “She’s got a staff meeting down at the bank tonight.” 

 

“A  _ staff _ meeting?” Lilly asked, not looking up from the necklace. “On a Saturday?” James nodded. “Yeah, I know. It’s pretty darn strange.” He went back to stirring the ramen. “Buuut I guess in a small town like this, y’can’t really complain.”    
  


  
  


That night, Lilly pried at the necklace. She had tried butter, water, even used her teeth once or twice. Nothing had worked. “This thing is indestructible!” she muttered to herself. “Mittens,” The kitten raised his head. “I’ll be right back.” Lilly sent him a grin. “I’m going to find a jackhammer!”

 

The kitten’s ears fell and he looked at her in horror.

 

“Eh, I’m kidding,” the girl laughed. She held the locket to her face. “It would take a miracle fee this thing to come open.” Lilly tossed the locket onto her nightstand and hopped back on her bed. She pulled the covers over her body and snuggled into the pillows. “G’night, Mittens.”

 

“Meow.”

 

Lilly smiled. “You too, pal.” She closed her eyes.

 

As she drifted off to dreamland, a pair of eyes watched her closely.

  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


  
  


The next morning began normally enough. Lilly dragged herself out of bed, dunked her face in some cold water to wake herself up, and trudged downstairs to the living room to watch some cartoons. But to her surprise, her parents were on the couch, staring at the screen and listening intently.    
  
No doubt about it. They were watching the news.   
  
“God dangit.” Lilly groaned. “I’m missing Roadrunner for a grandma in a pantsuit.” She continued her trek downstairs, her little spotted kitten trailing behind her. About three quarters of the way down, something on the screen caught her attention. 

 

_ “If you're just tuning in, an elderly woman has mysteriously been killed.”  _ said the woman on the screen.  _ “The victim had been identified as Katherine T. Bruner, a pastor of our local church.” _   
  


“Oh, God.” Amelia murmured. “Not Kathy.”   
  


“People just droppin’ dead like that..it’s not natural.” her father said.   
  
_ “This is the third killing to take place in this form.”  _ explained the news anchor.  _ “The scene is truly horrific.” _ The camera panned outwards from the crime scene. Katherine’s dead body was lying in a heap. It had become shriveled up, like one of those dead bodies in a museum. Her skin was dry and withered, and her hair had become mere strands of its normal volume.

 

Lilly felt herself start to grow sick. She’d known exactly who this woman was. Kathy wasn’t just a pastor, she was her babysitter. Whenever Lilly’s parents went out when she was a kid, they always trusted her with Kathy -- nobody else. On top of that, she had been a very generous woman. She always gave shelter to the homeless, gave to food banks, she did things a typical pastor would do. So why would someone kill her?

 

She ran back to her room, throwing on her turtleneck, sweats, and her gray coat. Soon after, she ran down the stairs and out the door, trying to avert her eyes from the gruesome documentary.

 

For some reason, she didn’t feel that hungry anymore.   
  


 

The park was eerily quiet that day. It was cloudy, and the temperature had dropped to the high 70s. There weren’t any children there. Many of the shops had closed down, with the exception of the church, the morgue, and an antique shop that was owned and operated by an immigrant family. Lilly sat on one of the many vacant swings. She stared at the mulch at her feet. It was bad enough that Katherine had died, but she had to die on a Sunday. That was cruel  _ and _ ironic. “So much for Joyful Sabbath.” the blonde muttered, kicking the mulch.

 

“Damnit,” she muttered. She glared at the ground as if it had done something to her. “Why did it have to be Kathy?” She felt tears stinging the corners of her eyes. It wasn’t fair. Kathy didn’t do anything but help people. She was the sweetest person Lilly ever knew. Whoever did this was nothing but a cold-hearted, unforgivable--

  
  


“Hey, Lils.”

 

Lilly screeched and nearly fell off the swing. Abbey was standing at the other end of the park, perched on the twisty slide. She had on her trademark hoodie with a pair of black pants and dark-brown loafers. The breeze blew her hair in her face, barely hiding her eyes. “What’s goin’ on?” she said, glancing waywardly around the playground. “There’s, like, nobody out here? I know it’s a Sunday, but-”

 

“Kathy died.” Lilly answered grimly. Abbey cocked her head. Her friend sighed. “Forget it. You wouldn’t know.” Abbey had moved to Point Pleasant a year ago, so there was no way she would’ve known of Kathy’s deeds. 

 

The brunette hopped off the playset and scuffed towards her friend. “Yeah, I heard about that.” she said. “They musta been pretty important. Th’whole town’s locked their windows and bolted their doors.” She took a seat on the swing next to Lilly and heaved a sigh. “Poor soul’s on ‘er way t’Heaven now.”

 

They sat in silence for a while. The only noise heard was the creaking of the swingsets, the soft rustle of the leaves and the occasional cries of a bird. Lilly glanced up. There was a large bird perched atop the twisty-slide. It had pitch-black feathers, dark-gray talons, and beady bright-blue eyes. She squinted at it. “Kinda weird for a crow t’be that close to humans.” she muttered. “We don’t even have any food for it.”

 

Abbey squinted at the bird as well. “That’s not a crow.” she said. “As an ametuer birdwatcher, i can garuntee it’s a raven.” Lilly glanced at her, then turned back to the bird. The bird locked eyes with her, blinking a few times before it spread its wings and disappeared into the forest. Abbey watched it fly away, a somewhat disheartened look in her eyes. A soft glimmer caught her eye, and soon the bird was forgotten.

 

“Nice necklace.” she said, gesturing to the silver chain around Lilly’s neck. The blonde cocked her head. Then she suddenly felt the weight around her neck and glanced down. Her eyebrows furrowed. ‘ _ I don’t remember putting this on. _ ’ she thought. “Uh..” she began. “..I found it in the attic yesterday. James said I could have it.”

 

The brunette blew a hair out of her face. “You’re welcome for the compliment.” she muttered. She folded her arms and slouched in the swing. “So,” she said. “Bunker hunt was a bust.”

 

Lilly’s face fell. “Yeah, I guess so.” she responded. “I mean, you had a mini panic attack, Dennis got mauled by a rodent and some wack job was shooting up the whole forest.” She leaned back. “I’d hardly call those results ‘yielding’.”

 

“Yeah,” her friend agreed. “So tell me what you saw yesterday.” Lilly perked up. She gave Abbey a confused expression. “Uh..what?”

 

Abbey stared at her, her teal eyes brimming with violent curiosity. "I doubt you tripped over something." she said. "You had to have seen something in there. I know it." Lilly looked at the ground. Should she really tell her what she saw? Should she tell  _ anyone  _ what she saw? Sure, she wouldn’t have a reason to make that sort of thing up, but it seemed so farfetched that even she didn’t believe what she saw.

 

“I..” she began. “I didn’t see anything.”

 

Abbey gave her a strange look. “You’re positive?” she muttered. Her eyebrows knit together. Lilly nodded furiously. “Yep! I didn’t see anything!!”

 

“Okay…” the brunette muttered. “If you say so..” Lilly’s eyes darted around the playground. This was getting a bit uncomfortable for her. “I, uh…” She hopped off the swing. “I gotta go now.” Abbey raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? You just got here.”

 

“No,” Lilly pointed at her. “YOU just got here. I have to go home. Uh…” She waved quickly. “Bye.” She hightailed it off the playground.

 

Abbey rolled her eyes. She glanced back to where the raven had sat. It soon returned, perching on top of the swingset. She stared up at it. The creature cawed at her.

 

“Yeah, yeah.” The brunette hopped off the swings. “I’m goin’. Don’t crap on me.”

  
  


A few streets away, Lilly ran down the sidewalk. Her breath coming out in puffs, she stopped by a lamppost. “Just…a little…” she puffed. “...further.” Unfortunately, her legs refused to cooperate, and she was forced to lug herself down the street. She turned the corner and climbed the driveway, which now seemed like a mountain compared to what it usually felt like. She trudged to the door and gripped the handle, nearly falling inside the house.

 

“I have a bat!!” Amelia came around the corner with a plastic baseball bat in her hands. She wiped her forehead. “Oh, it’s just you. Hi, sweetie!” The redheaded woman smiled. Lilly deadpanned. “Uh, yeah..just me, Mom.”

 

“Where were you?” her mother asked, still holding the bat. “You weren’t in your bedroom at 10:30, and I was just about ready to get in the car and drive around to-” She noticed her daughter’s expression and softened. “Sweetie…”

 

“I’m fine, Mom.” the blonde sniffed. “It’s not like it wasn’t bound to happen anyways.” She stared at the floor. Her mother placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. She smiled softly. “Hey,” Lilly glanced up. “It’s gonna be okay.” Amelia brushed a stray hair out of her daughter’s face. The two stood in silence for a while longer, and per an unspoken agreement, Lilly followed her into the parlor.

 

Lilly felt something vibrate in her back pocket. Removing her phone, she hit the answer button and brought it to her ear. “Hey, Dennis.” she said. There was some greetings tossed her way, and some more babbles that couldn’t be interpreted if you weren’t listening closely. “Yeah, I know.” she murmured. “I just can’t believe-” She paused. “What’s that?” There wa some more babbling. She stared into space, expression baffled. “....somebody just died….” she began. “And you want me….to have a sleepover with you.”

 

_ “Yeah! That’s what I just said!!” _

 

“Ahh...no.”

 

_ “Awww, come on!!” _

 

“SOMEBODY JUST DIED, DENNIS!!” Lilly yelled. “WHY WOULD I WANNA HAVE A SLEEPOVER?!”

 

_ “ ‘Cause it would be a way to help ease the pain?” _

 

Lily groaned. “I dunno, Dennis…”

 

_ “I have Mario Kart.” _

 

“Hey, Mom?” Amelia looked out of the kitchen doorway. “Yes, honey?”

 

Lilly swung her feet back and forth. “Is…” she began. “..is it okay if I hang out with Dennis today?” Her mother set down the book. She glanced at the ceiling for a moment. 

 

“Well…” she began. “I..suppose it’s okay.” Lilly’s face lit up. “Thanks, Mom!!” She crushed the redheaded woman in a bear hug. “You’re the best!!”

 

“I hear that!”

 

Amelia shot a look towards the couch. “Adrian!!” she yelled, her face heating up. Her husband laughed.   
  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


  
  


“BAM!!” Lilly slammed down the controller. “In yo FACE, SUCKA!! WHOO!!”

 

“Not fair!” Dennis cried. “I call rematch!!”

 

Lilly stuck her tongue out at him. “You’re just jealous ‘cause Dry Bones can beat a mutated turtle.”

 

“Dry Bones’ a mutant turtle, too! What’s the big deal?!”

 

The argument was interrupted by the pop music suddenly blaring from Lilly’s pocket. She whipped out her iPhone and groaned dramatically. “S’matter?” Dennis asked. “Did the parental lock get disabled?”

 

“Yeah.” Lilly put down the controller. “I gotta take this.” She hopped off Dennis’ bed and quickly exited the room. “Yo, Mom. What’s up?”

 

_ “It’s about damn time you picked up.” _

 

Lilly’s eyes went wide. This smooth baritone, clearly  **_male_ ** voice was not her mother’s. She drew a breath. “..who is this?” she asked slowly. “Why are you on Mom’s phone?”

 

_ “She doesn’t need it anymore.” _ answered the voice. _ “Or won’t, depending on how the following event plays out.” _

 

Lilly blinked twice and shook her head. “Hey, you didn’t answer!!” she barked into the phone. “I asked who you are!! Answer me!!”

 

_ “Sorry, one answer per customer. If you want any more, you’d be in some immense debt.”  _ The man sighed.  _ “Lilly, I want you to listen to me. In the next two hours, three people are going to be dead.” _

 

“Who are you?!” Lilly screamed. “Are you a serial killer?! What did you do with my parents?!” The voice on the other end sighed.  _ “If you choose to do nothing, you’ll be safe. If you choose otherwise; you might be able to do something.” _

 

_ “Where’s your overnight bag?” _

 

“My wha-it’s right over--” Lilly glanced inside Dennis’ room. Her heart stopped. The bag she’d taken with her had vanished. Her expression became furious. “What did you do?!”

 

_ “You ask a lot of questions. I’d say that’s a good trait, but right now, you’re annoying me.” _

 

“Tell me!!”

 

_ “You aren’t even listening, are you? Typical teenager.” _

 

Lilly clenched her teeth. This creepy guy was messing with her head. She hadn’t brought her overnight bag, had she? She was always forgetting things. Maybe she just thought she brought it with her, and turns out, she didn’t.

 

_ “I highly doubt you forgot something that essential.”  _ the male continued.  _ “To forget something like an overnight bag for a sleepover is like forgetting to turn the lights off when you leave a room. It’s just something you don’t do.” _

 

The blonde scoffed. “You sound like my mom, you creepo.”

 

_ “Now THAT’S creepy. I doubt that in any way, shape, or form that I could ever be your parent. You look nothing like me, you  _ _ act _ _ nothing like me,” _ he prattled on.  _ “And  _ _ I _ _ remember  _ _ everything. _ _ ” _

 

“Do you, now?” 

 

_ “Damn right, I do.” _

 

Lilly rolled her eyes. Creepy stranger or not, this guy was pretty arrogant. “Forget this.” she muttered. “I’m hanging up. Goodbye, crazy person.”

 

_ “If you hang up on me, I swear to God I’ll make you regret it.” _ the man hissed. Lilly bit her lip. “Oh, yeah? How so?” she said, not sounding as confident as she wanted to.

 

“I am right behind you.”

 

Lilly’s face paled as the line went dead. Slowly, she turned around. Warm breath fell on her neck. She whipped around, and saw…

 

...nobody.

 

“ARE YOU F@#KING  _ KIDDING _ ME?!”

 

Dennis’ mother appeared on the landing, panting and gripping the banister. She was a short woman in her early forties, with dusty-brown hair tied up in a messy bun and glasses that were too big for her face. “Lilly D. Anderson!!” she gasped. “Did you just swear in MY house?!”

  
  


A bead of sweat ran down Lilly’s forehead. “Uh…” She looked to the left. “No?....”

 

Dennis’ mother raised an eyebrow. “Really?” she said. “You didn’t forget anything important, did you?”

 

Lilly looked to the left again. “No?....”

 

“Downstairs, young lady. Now.”

 

“Aw, maaaann…”

  
  


Once she explained to Dennis’ mother that she had been yelling at a videogame (and  _ totally _ not yelling at some crazy psychopath over the phone), she agreed to drive Lilly home to get her backpack. She said that they would schedule a sleepover when the whole trio could be in attendance. As the green minivan backed out of the driveway, Lilly darted inside the house and ran up the stairs. Upon reaching her bedroom, her eyes darted around the room. There was nobody there.

 

She stood in front of her closet and stared it down. “Okay, closet.” she said. “I don’t like you, and you don’t like me. But I gotta get something out of you.” She pretended to roll up her sleeves and pulled her beanie down. The closet doors gave no reaction. “Wanna be that way?” The blonde snorted. “Fine. But you’re gonna regret this.” Lurching forward, she yanked open the closet, and a surplus of random items buried her.

 

After about five or so minutes, Lilly emerged from the rubble and held up her backpack. “Success!!” she cheered. She pulled herself up and dusted herself off. “Looks like I forgot it after all.” She smirked triumphantly and headed toward the bedroom door. It didn’t look like there was anything to worry about. The guy on the phone must’ve been her stepdad playing a prank on her.

 

Then again, Adrian usually knew when to quit…

 

Oh, well.

 

**_Thud._ **

 

Lilly stopped her downward trek. That was odd. It wasn’t coming from upstairs. “Hey, Mom?” she called. “What’s that sound? Are you guys playing Scrabble agai-”

 

When she entered the parlor, her heart practically stopped. Her parents were on the floor, a heap of dusty, bony, dried-up skin and limbs. Their hair was now frail strands, and their eyes were dull and lifeless. They looked like all the liquid had been sucked out of them.   
  
And standing over their dead bodies was a teenage girl.   
  
"Hey!!" The girl whipped her head towards the parlor entrance, her teal eyes wide. "L-lilly!!" she stammered. "W-what're you doing here? I thought you were with Dennis!"   
  
Lilly held up her backpack. "No.” she explained slowly. “I forgot my overnight bag. We had to cancel." She stared at the floor and gaped. "Why do my parents look like the "after" picture of Dracula's tanning session?!" Her frightened eyes went from her parents to the girl standing over them. The other girl’s eyes held a look of rage.

 

"Abbey?" Lilly felt her blood run cold as her back hit the wall. "Wh-what's going on?"   
  
Abbey's stare never let up.  A dark glimmer made itself known in her teal eyes. Her cold stare turned to a somewhat-apologetic look. "I don't wanna do this, Lilly. I really don't." The brunette sighed. "But it’s really the only way." Her eyes turned red. "You can keep the secret, and I don’t get caught.”   
  
Lilly felt her heart stop. ' _ I'm gonna die. _ ' she thought. ' _ I'm gonna die- _ ' She stopped her pity party for a minute. Loophole alert!! “U-unless you let me live!!” she interjected. “Then you’ll get off scot-free!”

 

“No, I won’t. You can’t keep your mouth shut.”   
  
With a shrill meow, Mittens rocketed out from his hiding place and landed on Abbey's arm. He opened his mouth and bit down, hard. The brunette cried out in pain. She flung Mittens across the room, and he landed on the coffee table as she held the spot in her arm where he'd bit her, her hand becoming stained with black blood.   
  
Sensing a this was a good time to make her escape, Lilly dashed to the table, scooped up Mittens, and ran. She bolted through the house faster than the time she was chased by an angry goose. She didn't bother to go to the door, because she knew it'd be locked. They always were in horror movies. Instead, she ran to the living room, kicked open a window, and jumped outside.    
  


She lay there on the front lawn, panting. Her adrenaline levels were higher than ever. Her green eyes stared up at the sky, half-lidded, as they watched the clouds drift over the moon. There a weak mew came from her chest. She looked down, into the yellow eyes of her kitten. It leaned up and nuzzled her, as if trying to say, "Don't be scared. I'll protect you."   
  
Lilly smiled weakly. "I know you'll protect me, Mittens." There was a loud crash from inside the house. Lilly pulled the kitten close to her. Mittens, in turn, meowed loudly and buried its face in her turtleneck. There wasn't a doubt. Abbey was looking for them. So she could find them and do.....whatever it was she did to Kathy and her parents.   
  
Then, out of the blue, something pulled her up. "What the-" Lilly was turned around as someone's hand took hold of her wrist and began dragging her -- and Mittens -- into the surrounding forest.   
  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


  
  


By this point in time, Lilly had lost track of where she was. All she knew was that she was in the forest by her house, and someone -- or something -- was dragging her through the underbrush. "H-hey," she panted, out of breath. "Ca-can we stop? My-ha-my legs are like je-heh-elly..."   
  
The person pulling her along turned to glare at her. "We aren’t stopping until we get somewhere safe. Got it?" Lilly blinked. "Uh, okay..."    
  
Wait! No, NOT okay!! This person was dragging her into the forest to do GOD knows what!! "Stop it!" She yanked her wrist away from them, who stopped running in turn. They stared Lilly down with fierce anger in their dark-blue eyes. "What's your problem?" they scolded her. "I try to spare you a gruesome death, and this is what I get from you?!"   
  
Lilly stepped back, rubbing her hand. "Of course it is!! You're trying to kidnap me!!" she cried. The person huffed. "Please. Why would I kidnap someone the same age as me?"    
  
"Uh, well...." Lilly paused for a minute. "..I guess you got a point, there." She shook her head. “W-well, you could’ve been stalking me! You could’ve been planning this for months!!”

 

Another huff. “True. But not very likely, since I shrieked when I first saw you.” Lilly blinked rapidly, her eyes trying to adjust to the darkness. When her vision came clear, she saw a girl about her height, maybe shorter, with black ponytails and a baseball hat.

 

Her mind clicked. It was the girl with the guns.

 

Lilly staggered backwards, her cat falling off her sweater and landing on the ground. Her green eyes widened with fear. “G-get away from me!” she stammered. The girl rolled her eyes. She fished through her pocket and handed Lilly some bright-colored pill-looking things. “Take these.” she said. “They’ll calm you down.” 

 

Lilly scoffed and turned up her nose. “Oh, gimme a break.” she huffed. “You think I’m gonna take roofies? I’ve seen those crime shows!!”

 

The raven cocked her head. She gave Lilly a strange look. “These are jelly-beans.” she said. “What the hell is a roofie?”

 

Mittens hissed at the other girl and puffed up his tail. Nearly unfazed, the raven strode over to the kitten. Mittens hissed louder. The girl stared him down. They stayed that way for a minute until she batted his forehead. “Bad kitty. No noisy.” The kitten stopped hissing, confused at the sudden pressure on his forehead. “That’s better.” She stepped back and gave the pair some space whilst Lilly took the jellybeans. The blonde chewed up the candies and swallowed them. She felt a little better now. “Okay,” she began. “Why did you bring me here?”

 

“To make sure you stay safe.” the raven answered. “There’s some real creepy sht going on down there.” 

 

“Well, no crap.” Lilly rolled her eyes. “I knew that before I came over here.” She shifted in her spot. Mittens hopped on her lap and glared at the other girl. She glared back at him. Lilly continued “If it’s so creepy, why didn’t you, I dunno, call the police?”

 

“You think they’d believe me?”

 

Lilly opened her mouth to retort, but thought for a minute. True, they wouldn’t believe such an outlandish story. But if the person sounded frantic enough, they could believe they were in possession of substances and come arrest them. But then THEY’D be getting the short end of the stick.

 

“Fair point.” she nodded. “Counterpoint -- what the heck does a teenage girl want with a teenage girl?” The raven knit her eyebrows. “I already told you. There’s some super weird shit going on. It’s better that you stay out of it.” 

 

“So what?! I don’t care!” Lilly shot back. “Why should I listen to someone when I don’t even know their name?!” The raven turned around, her expression soft, but grim. "My name’s Jillian.” Lilly blinked vacantly. Jillian didn't seem to notice. “There, happy?” she said, throwing her arms out. The gun she was holding flew out of her hand and hit a tree. “Ah, shit.”

 

Lilly felt her blood run cold. "W-wait, Jillian?" she stammered. "You mean like….” She swallowed and got quiet. “...Jillian Rothkiss?" The raven looked up and gave an exasperated nod.    
  
"Yep. That’s me." she said, retrieving her pistol. Lilly sat there, shocked. The pamphlet the town gave to tourists was wrong. All wrong! Jillian shouldn’t be here, she should be dead! “But-” she stammered. “Y-you’re supposed to be-”

 

“ **_Dead?_ ** ” Lilly flinched at the harshness of the girl’s tone. Jillian’s eyebrows knit together as she glared at the ground. “...yeah. I know. Don’t rub it in.” She wiped the dirty gun on her jean jacket and examined it. 

 

Lilly felt sick. She was talking to a dead person. Okay, maybe not a DEAD-dead person. But how could she have gotten out of the house that fast? Nobody’s that fast, are they? Then she remembered the reason she’d been running. “Wait!” she called as Jillian started to walk away. “Why do you wanna kill Abbey!!” 

 

“It’s none of your business.” the raven said, not even bothering to turn around. Lilly got to her feet and started after her. “Uhm, I think it IS my business!” She grabbed Jillian’s shoulder to try and make her stop. That did nothing, so she decided to keep yelling. “Abbey’s my friend!! If anything, just let me try t’reason with her!”

 

Jillian stopped in her tracks and glared at her. "That friend of your’s-” She spat the word ‘friend’. “-isn’t exactly human. In case you haven’t noticed, she’s dangerous.” The blonde gulped as the raven advanced on her. The other girl hissed, “If you wanna come along, fine. But you have to do exactly as I say." With that, she turned around and headed off into the darkness.

 

“Oh,” she called back. “No pressure or anything, but there’s a lotta shit in these woods that’re scarier than me.”    
  
Lilly gulped. Either go along with a dead girl to fight a creature from her nightmares, or hide in the forest and wait to be jumped by other creatures from her nightmares. As Jillian headed off into the darkness, Lilly found her feet moving in the same direction as she was.    
  
"I'm going to kill a creepy old woman disguised as a teenager." She sighed.    
  
"Life just LOVES me."   
  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


  
  


The girls finally reached Lilith's house, and it was in worse shape than before. The curtains were torn apart, the weathervane was spinning like crazy, and all the lights were turning on and off at random. From outside, Lilly could make out a dark shape moving frantically from window to window.   
  
Abbey.   
  
"Here's what we're gonna do." Jillian explained. She holding up one of her pistols. "The Hag can be killed by reciting the Lord's Prayer twice. You're gonna go in through the window, and I'll hide under it. When she sees you, keep her at bay for as long as you can while I recite the aria. And if she catches onto us.." She cocked the gun. "..we'll kill her the old fashioned way."    
  
"A bullet to the head?"   
  
"Yep." The raven pulled her cap down, hiding some of her face. She stayed silent for a while before sighing. "You sure you wanna do this?" she asked. "I've taken down bigger baddies than this one all by myself.”

  
Lilly furrowed her eyebrows. "Of course I do." she said. Jillian bit her lip. She didn't seem as confident as she did before. "That's  _ really  _ a monster in there, and if she gets you, you'll  _ really _ be dead."   
  
The blonde silenced her. "That demon -- or whatever Abbey is -- did something to my parents. Trust me, if this was a game, I’d be hiding in that bush right now." She grinned, her green eyes sparkling in the darkness. "I can do this just as well as you can."   
  
Jillian sighed. "Fine." She narrowed her eyes and held out her guns. "Let's go." Lilly left their hiding spot and headed for the house, Jillian trailing behind her in an almost ninja-like fashion.     
  
Placing her hand on the door handle, Lilly hesitated. She glanced at Jillian for support. She just stared at her. “What? Go in.” the raven ordered. Lilly glared at her. Nonetheless, she opened the back door and hesitantly stepped inside. She paused. “Hurry!” Jillian hissed. “Get in there before I push you in!”

 

That kid got her butt in gear.

 

She ran inside the house and into the living room. It was eerily quiet. Furniture was torn up, various items were on the floor, and it looked like Abbey’s shoes had tracked mud into the house. “If Mom saw this, she’d have a conniption.” Lilly muttered. 

 

“Huh.” Lilly jumped when Abbey entered the room. She had a somewhat-embarrassed deadpan on her face. “Guess you weren’t in the closet after all.”

 

“Uhh, no I wasn’t.” Lilly responded awkwardly. “I was in the toolshed.” Awkward silence. Lilly waved her hands weakly. “Yaaaay….” she cheered weakly.

 

Underneath the window, Jillian knit her eyebrows. ‘ _ Is this kid for real? _ ’ She held her breath. "Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name.."   
  
Inside the house, Abbey felt a sting of pain in her chest. She just ignored it. She was hungry, and didn't feel like dealing with stomach pains right now. Curse those humans and their complicated digestive systems.....   
  
Lilly noticed the Hag's look of pain and cocked her head. "Uh, what's the matter?" she asked, hoping her acting was good enough. Abbey coughed. She punched her left chest. "Juuuust working your parents through."   
  
The blonde feigned a look of disgust. "I did not need to know that." Jillian must've started the prayer. She could tell by Abbey’s paling complexion that she was starting to get weaker. 

 

There was a hiss from behind Lilly. She’d completely forgotten that Mittens had followed her in. The small cat bared his fangs at Abbey. She, in turn, growled at him. “I never liked that stupid hairball.” she spat. Mittens hissed at her again. “He’s had it out for me since Day One.”

 

Sensing the hostility, Lilly picked up Mittens and held him close. “You can’t blame him for attacking you, right?” she asked, trying to spark a conversation. “He was just protecting me. He didn’t mean to hurt you.”

 

“Yes, he did. He was protecting you.” Abbey groaned. “Honestly, Lilly, you’re such an idiot. Why don’t you think your sentences through once in a while?” 

 

The blonde stuck her tongue out. “Well, ex-cuse me, Princess, for being a cat lover.” She laughed to herself. “Eh? See what I did there?”

 

Abbey rolled her eyes. “Yeah. I get it.” she muttered. “Idiot.”

 

“Just ‘cause I’m blonde doesn’t mean I’m an idiot.” Lilly snapped. Mittens hissed again. “You were acting so damn strange about what I saw in the woods yesterday. Why does that affect you?”

 

“Cause if you didn’t see anything, I wouldn’t do this.”

 

In a split second, Abbey lunged at the window, crashing through the glass and sending Jillian careening onto the lawn. Lilly’s eyes widened in horror. She knew what was going on?! The entire time?! 

 

“Go right ahead,” Jillian coughed. “The cops are already on their way. You kill me, and your cover is blown.” Abbey’s face reddened. She grit her teeth. She clamped her hands around the raven’s throat and opened her mouth. Her jaw extended far beyond humanly possible. Her mouth was full of jagged yellow teeth and a curling tongue. Saliva fell from her mouth, and there was some sort of blue light in the back of her throat.

 

Lilly felt frozen. She didn’t know what she was supposed to do. What could she do against something like that? Just watch as Jillian got killed?

 

But…

 

She still owed her something.

 

Lilly’s green eyes fell upon the gun Jillian had dropped when Abbey tackled her. She grabbed the pistol off the ground and held it up. ‘ _ Okay, Lilly. _ ’ she thought. ‘ _ Just...just pretend that it’s a paintball gun. _ ’ She pointed the gun at Abbey and cocked it. Lilly gulped back her tears. _ “I’m sorry, Abbey.”  _ She looked away.

 

The brunette’s head snapped up at the sound of the gun. She glared at Lilly, and immediately she gained a look of horror. “You won’t shoot me!” she hissed. “You’re too soft!”

 

“I…” Lilly began to shake. “I thought you were my friend.” She glared at the brunette. “Was it all a lie?! Were you just gonna kill them and leave us behind?!” Abbey furrowed her eyebrows. 

 

She muttered, “Are you just gonna lecture me at gunpoint and think I’m gonna realize what I’m doing is wrong?” Lilly didn’t answer. “Of course I know it’s wrong!!!” the brunette spat. “But y’know why I’m doing it?! To survive. I don’t get energy from apples or trail mix! I get it from people!!!” Tears stung her eyes. “Living people...with friends and families...people who had a whole life ahead of them..”

 

“I don’t have to!” the blonde shrieked. Abbey blinked. “I don’t have to kill you! You can just apologize and it’ll be alright!!” she sobbed. “The phone guy can be wrong!!”

 

At the mention of the person who called her, Abbey’s eyes flashed and she bared her teeth. “HE’S NEVER WRONG!!” she roared. “SOMEONE IS GOING TO DIE!!!”

 

“BUT IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE YOU!!!”

 

“THE HELL IT DOESN’T!!” Abbey yelled back at her. Lilly flinched. “I’ve been killing people since I learned how t’walk!! Who would you choose?!” She glared down at Jillian, who was scratching at her wrists to make her let up. “Some kid who’s s’posed t’be dead-” She glared back at Lilly. “Or some demon who doesn’t give a rat’s ass about  _ anyone?! _ HUH?!”

 

The hands around Jillian’s neck loosened. She shoved the girl off of her. Her skin was noticeably paler and she looked rather depleted. “Thank God that’s over.” She glanced over at Lilly. The blonde was shaking like Hell and her face was wet from the tears on her face. Her eyebrows knit together. “Hey.” The blonde looked up. Jillian put a hand on her shoulder. 

 

“You did the right thing, Lilly.” she said.  _ “ _ You did the right thing.”

 

Lilly choked. “Hey,” The raven gripped her shoulder. “You…” She saw the terror in the girl’s eyes and silenced herself. “....you better go an’ get some clothes. Somethin’ tells me y’won’t be home for a while.” She paused for a minute. “I’ll go see what I can salvage from your parents.” The raven headed in the house, leaving the blonde with her bearings.

 

Lilly breathed shakily, her eyes still glued to the ground. A soft breeze blew through the night. She swallowed audibly, turned around, and went inside the house.   
  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


  
  


Lilly finished stuffing the last of her belongings in the suitcase she’d pulled from the attic. It wasn’t very much, but she managed to fit in the bare necessities. Her eyes then fell upon the old locket. It was still there, sitting on her nightstand, virtually undisturbed. She picked up the trinket.

 

‘ _ If I hadn't found this thing, _ ’ she thought. ‘ _ Maybe Abbey wouldn't have attacked in the first place. _ ’ Her eyebrows furrowed. ‘ _ And Mom and Adrian could still be alive. _ ’ Hot tears gathered in the corners of her eyes. She squeezed her eyes shut. ‘ _ No. What-ifs won’t do me any good. _ ’

 

She heard a soft  _ click. _

 

By the will of some unknown force, the locket had popped open. Inside it was an old, faded-out, very well-drawn picture of a young woman. She had dark hair pulled up in a bun, fair skin, and dark eyes. She was wearing old-century clothes, and the same locket was around her neck. 

 

Lilly stared at the woman in the photo. She looked like Jillian.  _ Exactly  _ like Jillian. Could this have been her’s? Without a doubt, despite having no evidence to prove it; Lilly knew the woman’s name.

 

“Deborah.”

 

“Who’s Deborah?”

 

Lilly jumped and whipped her head around. Jillian was standing in the door, leaning on the frame. The blonde glared at her. “Jean Louise, woman! You made my heart skip a beat!!”

 

Jillian shrugged. “Yeah. I have that effect on people.” She glanced at the locket in Lilly’s hand. “Whatcha got there?” Lilly’s green eyes darted down to the trinket. She immediately tensed up. “Uhh, nothing! Family heirloom!”

 

“Okay..” The raven stuffed her hands in her pockets. “We’d better get goin’. The cops aren’t gonna wait forever.” 

 

Lilly’s eyes bulged. “You called the cops?!” she shrieked. Jillian raised an eyebrow. “Uh, yeah. Did you think I was bluffing?” 

 

A bead of sweat rolled down Lilly’s face. “Kinda…” She shook her head. How could Jillian call the cops, anyway?! She didn’t have a phone on her, and she was pretty sure the landline was dead. 

 

“Lilly,” The blonde turned around. Her eyes met Jillian’s. They were soft, caring, almost...human. “There’s something you should know.” Jillian breathed deeply. “When a hag finds food, it  _ always _ gives their victim nightmares for a good few weeks before it kills them in their sleep. Those people she killed -- they weren’t supposed to look that way.”

 

The blonde’s eyebrows furrowed. “What’re you saying?”

 

“I’m saying they weren’t subjected to mental torture before they died. They died quicker than they should’ve.”

 

Lilly felt tears stinging her eyes. She’d thought that Abbey was a monster. But would a monster have followed the rules of their own kind? Yes. Abbey killed them painlessly. She wasn’t supposed to do that. By breaking the rules she’d made….

 

...she was more human than Lilly ever was.

 

She felt a hand gently grasp her shoulder. Their eyes met again. “Come on,” the raven said. “We gotta go.” She headed out of the bedroom, and Lilith followed. When she got to the door, she turned around. She took a look at her bedroom one last time before heading down the hallway.

 

Lilly headed down the stairs for the last time. She went through the dining room one last time. She scoped out the kitchen one last time. She went down five of the basement steps and chickened out for the last time.

 

She went into the parlor one last time. She looked at her parents one last time. She hugged her father one last time. She kissed her mother’s cheek one last time. She then spit out whatever death particles had gotten in her mouth.

 

A soft glimmer caught her attention. Around her mother’s neck was a small locket. It had two golden spheres strung across a golden chain, and in the middle was a slightly-larger white cross. Cringing, she removed it from the dead body and held it up. Her attention span then fell upon a picture that had been taken when she was seven. It showed her mother, her father, and her, playing outside on her birthday.

 

She glanced behind her at the husks before she left the parlor for the last time. Mittens bounded after her. As they passed the living room window, she caught a glimpse of the brown-haired head resting in the grass. Her heart twisted. ‘ _ See ya, Abbey. _ ’ she thought. She tore her gaze from the yard and headed towards the back door.

 

Jillian was standing outside, Lilly’s overnight bag in hand. The cool breeze blew her neatly-cut hair in her face, but remaining unable to hide the light of her unnatural blue eyes. “You ready t’go?” she asked. Lilly turned around and stared at her house. Her gut began to twist again.

 

“Yeah.”

 

The raven felt a small smile grow on her face. This kid had been through Hell tonight. But she was standing in front of her old life, determination and pet kitten at her side, ready to move forward. “Come on, then.” She slung the bag over her shoulder and turned towards the woods. “Cops aren’t gonna wait forever.”

 

Lilly slung her backpack over her shoulder in a manner copying Jillian’s. She took a deep breath and began to follow. 

 

A growling noise reached her ears. She glanced down. Mittens was glaring at the house, ears flattened and tail in the air. His tail was puffed up and his fur was standing on end. “Mittens?” The kitten gave a ferocious hiss in response. Lilly blinked. “Uh, Mittens?” she asked. “Are you oka-”   
  
**_BOOOOOOMM!!_ ** **_  
_ **   
Lilly found herself thrown forwards by a force stronger than anything she'd ever felt. Her ears were ringing loudly, and her vision was blurry. She spat the grass out of her mouth and tried hoisting herself up. Her muscles refused to cooperate, and her head would only come a few inches off the ground.   
  


Lilly could only hear the ringing of her ears and the muffled crackles as the flames engulfed her house. She felt something wet coat her legs. To her horror, it was her blood. The light of the flames cast unnatural shadows on her face.   
  
She watched in horror as her house, the one she'd lived in for fifteen years, burned to the ground in front of her. The fence around it caught some of the flames, and erupted to ashes in seconds.   
  


The entire house was up in flames.   
  
Jillian turned around. Her eyes widened and she immediately bolted towards the house. "LILLY!!!" She made a beeline for the blonde, immediately picking her up and dashing in the other direction. 

 

As Lilly fell into unconsciousness, a lone scene played in her mind over and over. Through the blinding light of the fire and the stinging of her eyes, she had seen something. She had seen a young man in the house, watching her with his ice-blue eyes.  

 

There was someone in the fire who wasn't burning at all.   
  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


  
  


When Lilly woke up, she was lying in a bed. It was small, covered with a handmade quilt that had seen better years. Her head was propped up on some pillows, and she was tucked snugly underneath the old quilt. Her whole body hurt like hell, and her head throbbed mercilessly. Laying on her chest -- thank God -- was her little, black and white kitten, Mittens. The kitten looked up, his blue eyes blinking owlishly. 

 

Before she had time to react, Mittens launched himself at her, attacking her face with licks. Lilly hugged his tiny body, cradling him and petting him as tears ran down her face. She was so sure he had died in the fight, she had lost all hope.   
  
"You're up." Jillian was sitting in a rocking chair on the other side of the room. There was a small cloth in her hands, and she was rubbing a small pistol with it. She stared at Lilly, looking somewhat relieved. “Son of a bitch, I thought we’d lost you.” Her houseguest blinked tiredly. "Where are we?.." she croaked. The other girl stood up from the rocking chair. "The Bunker of Death." She blew on the pistol. “ ‘least that’s what the locals call it.”   
  
Lilly almost fell off the bed. "Wait, what?!" She crawled backwards until her back hit the wall. Why would she be in the Bunker of Death? Was Jillian a murderer all along? That's it! She was a murderer! She was going to kill her and hang her severed head on a pole! "Wh-what are we doing here?!" she demanded. Her already-aching muscles tensed.    
  


The raven-haired girl sighed. "I  _ live _ here, alright?" she admitted. Lilly blinked. "You..you live down  _ here? _ " Jill nodded. "But..but.. _ why? _ "   
  


"It’s a long story that I don't feel like sharing." Jillian shrugged.   
  
"Well, your house just burned down." the other girl said. "The way I see it, you got nowhere else to go." Lilith stared at the floor. That statement wasn't entirely true. She  _ did  _ have an aunt and uncle she could stay with. But they were strict as hell, and they lived three states away.    
  
"Alright." she agreed. "But if I'm gonna be staying here, I need to know I can trust you." The blonde hawked and spit in her hand. She stuck out to Jillian. "Pals?"   
  
Jill sighed. She repeated the gesture and took Lilly's hand. "Pals."   
  
Lilly smiled as they commenced the spit-shake. In five seconds, Jillian pulled her hand back. “Okay, ew.” she grimaced, staring at her spit-covered palm. “Lemme just wash my hand and I can get us all some dinner.” Mittens meowed in excitement. Jillian glanced down at him. “Hey, you’re getting some, too, pal. Easy.” She got up from the bed and headed out of the room, possibly to another part of the bunker.

 

Lilly stared after her as Mittens jumped back on her chest. She lay her head back on the pillow. In an entire evening; she’d lost her parents, her house, and fifteen years of her whole life. In that same evening; she’d also fought a monster, shot a gun for the first time, been in a burning house, and made friends with a dead girl who wasn’t as dead as the tourist guidebook made her sound. 

 

Would there more monsters, and more casualties to come? Yep. Would she be terrified?  _ Oh _ yeah. Would she fight them to keep the tiny shreds what was left of her life?

 

You better believe it. 

 

And she wouldn’t be alone, either. It was like that cartoon said: when you battle a soul-sucking monster with someone, they’ve always got your back. She had Jillian, Mittens, and Dennis, if he would believe her. In the back of her mind, a voice kept nagging at her to tell Jillian about what she saw. Oh, well. It was probably just her imagination.   
  
Humans don’t have wings, anyway.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
**_End of Chapter One_ **

  
  


**_A Due-North Studios Production_ **

 

**_Director/Producer: Chi Kusho_ **

 

**_Co-Producer/Creative Consultant: Fibonaccithegeek_ **

 

**_Associate Co-Producer/Motivational Specialist: CreepySarah16_ ** **_  
_ ** **_  
_ ** **_Story: Chi Kusho_ **

 

**_Editing: Fibonaccithegeek_ ** **_  
_ ** **_  
_ ** **_Characters: CreepySarah16 and Chi Kusho_ **

 

**_Art by Chi_ **

 

**_Starring:_ **

**_Madeleine Martin as Lilly Anderson_ **

**_Alexandra Daddario as Jillian Rothkiss_ **

**_Dylan Riley Snyder as Dennis Whalgreen_ **

**_Guest-starring Billy West as Adrian Anderson, Mae Whitman as Amelia Anderson, Tress MacNeille as Mrs. Whalgreen and News Reporter, Ray Chase as Mysterious Caller and Alona Tal as Abbey Winchester._ **

  
**_This story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to characters living or dead is completely coincidental. All rights reserved to Due-North Studios._ **


	2. Chapter II: Prices Below Zero

**_The Lost Ones:_ **

**_Chapter II: Prices Below Zero_ **

  
  
  
  
  
  


Lilly spent a good two hours in dreamland before she felt something trying to shake her. “Mmrgrff….” she muttered sleepily. “Five more minutes…” The shaking only increased in power, and it seemed the more she resisted, the more violent it got. Lilly swatted at the unseen force before burying her face in the pillow. “Go away…” she muttered. That seemed to stop the force for a good five minutes, so Lilly managed to get five more minutes of precious sleepy-time…

 

..until something very, very cold was dumped on her head.

 

Lilly shrieked in terror as the water slid down her head and seeped into her clothes. She rocketed off the tiny bed and, to her dismay, fell flat on her face. There was a loud  _ clang! _ from behind her. She turned to see Jillian, clad in black shorts and a jean jacket, with a bucket at her feet. “Great, you’re up.” she said. Lilly glared at her. “Ice water?! Seriously?!”

 

Jillian shrugged. “It woke you up, didn’t it?” She kicked the bucket to a corner of the room and shoved her hands in her pockets. “I’ve got breakfast ready in the kitchen.” Lilly looked up, the freezing of her muscles completely forgotten. “You’ve got a freaking  _ kitchen _ in this thing?” she wondered, a little louder than she intended.

 

Jillian pushed some hair out of her face. “This thing was built for the apocalypse. Of course it has a kitchen.” She turned back around and left the room. Lilly pouted to herself before she shakily got to her feet and followed her. Mittens tailed her as she left the room.

 

Lilly stared at the large room before her. It was something like she’d expected it to be. There were small hallways and somewhat-larger rooms they entered. Of course, there were no telling right now how many rooms there were, because as of now, she’d only seen one of them.

 

Seeing all the passageways made her wonder how large the bunker really was. As she passed a small corridor, she saw various boards nailed over the entrance. They must’ve been nailed in a hurry, because the craftsmanship was just terrible. There were barely-readable words written in Sharpie, and there was a cross drawn on with a dark-red substance….

 

Lilly shuddered and ran to catch up with Jillian. Even if it was a regular storeroom, she got a bad feeling about whatever was behind those boards. That red cross didn’t look too promising.

 

She followed Jillian into a somewhat-larger room with a stove, oven, a surprisingly up-to-date microwave, a seemingly-working refrigerator, and (surprisingly)a large kitchen table. She sat down at the table. “Alright,” she said. “What we got?”

 

“Well, we got water, orange juice,” Jillian grabbed a red cereal box and set it in front of Lilly. “And Frooty-O’s.” Lilly stared blankly at the box she’d been given. “...seriously?”

 

“Yeah. Eat up.” The raven opened the refrigerator at took out an apple. Lilly furrowed her eyebrows. She picked up the cardboard box and tipped it over the empty bowl. “If I had some guns, I wouldn’t make you eat this.”

 

Jillian shut the fridge with her foot. “Sorry, kid. My guns, my rules.” She set the fruit down on the table and cracked open a water bottle. “And I say you’re not trained enough t’use ‘em.” she declared. Lilly glared at her. 

 

“Hey, I saved your life. Don’t be stingy.” Jillian scolded. She raised the water bottle to illustrate her point. She gulped down some of her water and set it down on the table. She took a bite from the apple. “Eat your cereal. Can’t go on a supply run hungry.”

 

Lilly’s head snapped up. “‘Supply run’?” she echoed.

 

“Yeah, we need to stock up on ammo.” Jillian looked at the floor. “...aaaaand I haven’t been to the grocery store in a while.”

 

“Say no more!!” Lilly slammed her fist on the table, startling Mittens and causing some of the cereal to spill out of the bowl. “I’ll be ready in five minutes!!”

 

Jillian raised an eyebrow. “....okay.” she said. “But I’m warning you, it might not be all that glamorous-” Lilly was barely able to hear her over the scarfing of her cereal. In two minutes, the Frooty-O’s were gone and Lilly hopped out of her seat and ran back the way she’d came.

 

In three more minutes, Lilly had washed her face, looked for her overnight bag, complained about not finding it, and tripped over it on her way out of the room. ‘ _ Thank God I thought to pack some clothes. _ ’ she smiled inwardly. She dug through the suitcase and pulled out her dark-purple jacket, a pair of mittens, and a scarf. 

 

She stared at her reflection in her camera phone. Her eyebrows knit together. “Something’s missing.” she deadpanned. Problem was,  _ what?  _ The light bulb went off after a moment and she removed her gray beanie from underneath the pillow.

 

“That’s better.” Lilly smiled. She ran out of the bedroom, but stopped at the door when she heard a soft “meow!”. Lilly turned around and saw Mittens pawing her shoelace. She frowned. “I’m sorry, Mittens,” She picked up the cat. “You can’t come with me this time. This is for girls only.” Mittens mewled and licked her nose. Lilly felt her gut twisting. She didn’t like leaving Mittens behind.

 

She went past the creepy door, past the kitchen, past what looked like a mini-library(neat!!) and finally found the exit. She stood eagerly by the ladder. What felt like a half-hour passed before she began getting impatient. “Come on, Jillian!!” she yelled. “Get the lead out!!”

 

“I’m comin’!!” came Jillian’s response. “Jeez, have a little patience!!” A couple more minutes passed before she came out. She was wearing her regular jean jacket, a blue button-up, a dark-purple skirt, and a large sunhat. 

 

Lilly couldn’t see her reflection, but if she looked in a mirror, her face would look pretty ridiculous right now. “Gffn…” she stuttered, holding her gut as she tried not to laugh. “Nice hat.” 

 

Jillian deadpanned. “Yeah, yeah, laugh it up.” She pushed past Lilly. “Try not to look up my skirt.” she muttered and headed up the ladder.

 

Lilly rolled her eyes and climbed after her. “So where are we going?” she asked excitedly. “Spooky old house? The Crypto-cult Museum?”

 

“Not really.” Jillian twisted the handle and pushed up on the trapdoor. “It’s not exactly inconspicuous.”

 

“Ooh, sounds exciting.”

 

Jillian narrowed her eyes. “Prepare to be surprised.”   
  


  
  
  


Lilly deadpanned at the building in front of her. “...an antique shop.” she droned. “It’s….an antique shop.”

 

“Not just  _ any _ antique shop.  _ This... _ ” Jillian gestured to the store with a dramatic flourish. “..is a  _ Chinese  _ antique shop.”

 

“...”

 

“Okay, it’s just an antique shop.”

 

Lilly groaned. “Seriously?” She dejectedly followed Jillian towards the store. “I thought we were gonna stock up  _ weapons _ , not furniture.” Jillian glared at her. “I told you to stop whining.” she scolded. “People don’t exactly  _ believe  _ in monsters, these days.”

 

The bell above the door chimed as the girls trudged inside. The inside was a dark red, with various antiquities strewn about shelves and locked behind glass cases. There were vibrantly-colored tapestries hanging on the walls, and the whole shop was illuminated by several paper lanterns.

 

“HIYA!!!”

 

Lilly shrieked in terror as a woman with bright-green hair shot up from behind the counter. Jillian deadpanned. “Hi, Lan.” she said. The woman at the counter grinned and threw up her arms. “Heeeeyy, Jilly-bean!” she greeted enthusiastically. “How ya been?”

 

Lan had olive skin, hair in a bun, and sparkling brown eyes. She appeared to be of Asian descent, but her accent had more American than it did Asian. Maybe her parents immigrated a while back?

 

There was a vibration in Lilly’s pocket. She immediately realized her phone was still in her pocket. She hadn’t remembered taking it out at  _ all  _ the previous night after the psychopath called her. Lilly removed her phone from her pocket and glanced at it. Her face paled.

 

_ Unknown Number. _

 

The blonde shoved the phone back into her pocket. Someone was trying to call her. Someone she didn’t know, from a number the phone didn’t recognize. It couldn’t have been Jillian. Or anyone! There was no area code!

 

The phone vibrated again. Great. Now what? “Uh, Lan?” The green-haired woman glanced at her from across the shop. “Where’s your bathroom?”

 

Lan smiled. “Sure! First door to the left.” She pointed behind her. Lilly smiled sheepishly. “Thanks!” She ran past Lan and Jillian and into the back room. “Who was that?” Lan cocked her head when Lilly was out of earshot.

 

“She’s….” Jillian glanced behind her. “..she’s a friend.” Lan burst out laughing. “Jilly-bean, how many times do I tell you?” she giggled. “I know you. You don’t have  _ friends! _ ”

 

Jillian glared at her. “Well, I do now.” She plunked the bag on the counter. “But enough talk. You know why I’m here.” She glared at the woman from under her bangs. “Open it up.”

 

Lan grinned widely, the kind of grin you’d be accustomed to seeing on Daffy Duck or a cartoon supervillain. “Yes, ma’am!” She turned around and snatched a set of keys from the top shelf. Glancing back at the teenager, she snickered. Jillian glared at her. “What?”

 

“Gff.” Lan snickered. “Nice hat.”   
  
  


 

Lilly hastily shut the bathroom door and leaned against the wall. She removed her cell again and her eyes bulged.

  
  


_ Unknown Number: ANSWER THE GODDAMN CELL PHONE, YOU HACK.      5 seconds ago _

 

_Unknown Number: I know you’re there._ _10 seconds ago_

 

_Unknown Number: Answer me, blondie._ _15 seconds ago_

 

_1 Missed Call: Unknown Number_ _30 seconds ago_

  
  


Great! Now this guy was texting her!!

 

The phone rang again.  _ Unknown Number. _ Lilly gave an audible growl of frustration. She hit the green button and brought the cell to her ear. “WHAT?!”

 

_ “It’s about damn time you picked up. What the hell are you doing, anyway?” _

 

“Well,” Lilly growled. “I am in the bathroom of an antique shop, trying to make sure the only person that knows I’m alive FROM FINDING OUT YOU CALLED ME!!!”

 

_ “Why would I be worried about her,  _ **_Lilith?_ ** _ ” _

 

Lilly’s stomach churned as a lump began to form in her throat.

 

_ “That’s right, I know your name. And I know a whole bunch of other stuff about you, too. I know your height, your birthday, your greatest fears, how much you weigh -- I know ALL of it.”  _ The man gave a dry “ha”.  _ “I even know your tiny brain is reeling right now at this little revelation. And you also want to know who I am, don’t you? Am I insane? Am I a stalker? Am I a demented serial killer just waiting for the moment to strike?!” _ He laughed on the other end. The blonde held her breath. Sweat fell down her face. Who was this man?

 

_ “Buuuut that’s not why I called.”  _ Lilly faceplanted into the wall. She gave a cry of pain and rubbed her forehead. _ “Never do that again. As much as I like to see you humans scramble for solutions, I have a few things to say about last night.”  _ There was soft thunks, which gave the illusion he was pacing. A sigh.  _ “I saw the whole thing, Lilly dear. And I have to admit, I was surprised. Who would’ve thought  _ **_you’d_ ** _ be the one to pull the trigger on a friend you could no longer trust?” _

 

A series of flashbacks ran through her mind. The husks of her parents, the ferocity in Abbey’s eyes, the choking cries of Jillian as she was being strangled, the picture of Deborah….and the fire. She grit her teeth. “You.” she growled through clenched teeth. “You’re the one who’s responsible. You’re the reason Abbey’s-”

 

_“_ _I’m_ _the reason? Oh, no, Lilith._ _I_ _had nothing to do with it.”_ The voice chuckled dryly. “ _I only told you and Abbey what was going to happen. I didn’t say_ _she_ _was going to die. And I never told you to kill her. You made those decisions all on your own._

 

_ “And because of those decisions, you’ve sealed your fate.”  _ The man’s tone grew dark and serious.  _ “You’ve gone and gotten my hopes up, Lilith. Now I want to see what else you can do. In return for your….troubles, I’ll reward you with one, and ONLY one answer to any question you might have. Since you’ve already shown me a good amount of potential, you get one right now.” _

 

Lilly bit her lip. This was a tough call. Either become some creeper’s living soap opera and get some actual answers, or show him how colorful her vocabulary was and continue to stumble blindly in the dark. She breathed deeply. “Alright,” she said. “That...that thing that was in the fire. Was that you?”

 

The man was silent.  _ “...that’s an odd first question.” _ he mused.

 

“Well, I know more about you than  _ you _ think.” Lilly objected. “I know you’re male, you like questions, you’re a sadistic jackass who happens to be a snobby-ass know-it-all--”

 

_ “I don’t think of myself as a ‘know-it-all’, Lilly.” _ the caller interrupted.  _ “I think of me as a….wise-guy. _

 

_ “As for the thing in the fire, no. It was not me.” _ Lilly sighed in relief.  _ “But it also wasn’t something you were supposed to see.” _

 

Crap.

 

_ “That creature you saw..it’s dangerous.”  _ Double crap.  _ “For all your insignificant teenage life is worth, you have to stay away from him.” _

 

“But-”

 

_ “We’re sorry.” _ came a woman’s voice.  _ “The number you have dialed is currently out of service. Please hang up and try your call again. For additional service, please press one-” _

 

Lilly growled and threw her phone on the ground. “He f@#king hung up on me!” Her face paled. She covered her mouth and glanced at the door. ‘ _ Crap, that was loud. _ ’ she scolded herself. She knelt down and picked up her phone. The screen had a small crack, but it wasn’t that serious. She sighed. “Dangit, Lilly.” She shoved the phone back in her pocket and pushed the door open.

 

When she got back, Jillian was nowhere to be seen. “Uh…” Lan looked behind her. Lilly glanced to her left. “..where’s Jillian?” she asked. The Asian woman blinked. Then she smiled mischievously and pointed behind Lilly. “Basement.” she whispered. Lilly’s face went blank. “Uh…” She looked from Lan to the door. “Okay?....”

 

She slowly stepped backwards, and continued doing so until Lan was out of sight. Then she bolted down the hall. “Okay,” she whispered. “One of these things has to be the exit.” Her eyes darted around the dimly-lit hall. It was hard for her to see. While her head was turned, she ran smack into a wooden door. Rubbing her head, she looked at the large sign on it that read ‘BASEMENT’.

 

Lilly contemplated her options. She could enter the basement and try to find the one sane person who could help her in this establishment. Or she could give into cowardice and refuse to do supply runs ever again.

 

She forgoed cowardice and forced open the door.

 

That proved to be a terrible decision when she went tumbling down a flight of uncarpeted wooden stairs.

 

She clutched her bleeding forehead. “Owwww….”

 

“ _ There  _ you are.” came someone’s voice. “Gah, do I need to put a leash on you or something?”

 

Lilly blinked rapidly and stuck her arms out in front of her. “Jillian?” she said. “Where are you?”

 

“Right in front of you,  _ duh. _ ”

 

“Well, I’m sorry that  _ I can’t freakin’ see- _ ”

 

A lightbulb suddenly flashed on. Lilly turned around and saw a black-haired girl in a hoodie within close proximity. She jumped back and screamed. Jillian rolled her eyes at Lilly’s cowardice. “Oh, my God.” she groaned, rubbing her temples. “It’s just Jun.”

 

Lilly opened her eyes. “Jun?”

 

“Yeah, she’s Lan’s little sister.” Jillian gestured to the girl using her as a human shield “Jun, this is Lilly. She’s a, uh..friend of mine.” Jun nodded and bowed respectfully. Lilly stared at her from behind Jillian and waved awkwardly.

 

Suddenly, her shield walked away. Lilly squeaked. “I’m just looking for ammo,” Jillian groaned. “I’m not abandoning you. Jeez.” She headed to a counter and started looking through a glass case. It was then Lilly finally decided to become aware of her surroundings. 

 

The basement did not look at all like a typical basement. There were shrunken heads and what looked like talismans hanging from the ceiling like decorations. There were shelves littered with dusty old books and shady-looking jars. She saw some guns hanging on the wall, and more than a few swords up there with them. There was a small bowl on the counter Jillian was standing at that was filled with miniature crosses. There was a note in front of it that said ‘ _ Crosses for your convenience. Comes with bottle of holy water. Take one free! :)  _ ’

 

‘ _ This is like some kind of occult museum.. _ ’ she thought to herself. Someone behind her cleared their throat. She found Jun standing a bit closer to her. Now that she wasn’t lurking in the shadows, Lilly could see her better than before.

 

Jun’s hair was dark, even for dark hair, which was probably why she’d decided to dye a bright-blue streak on the side of her head. Her outfit had a dark color scheme, which consisted of a lightweight-looking hoodie, some dark-gray running pants, and dark-gray running shoes. Her skin shade was barely darker than her sister’s, and her eyes were a darker shade of brown that made her pupils look almost nonexistent.

 

“Blustery Monday, isn’t it?” Jun said. Lilly shivered. She didn’t like the way Jun was looking at her. That empty look in her eyes was making her feel inadequate. “Uh, y-yeah.” she agreed. “Sure is.” The other girl stared at her for a while longer before turning her head away.

 

Lilly was becoming a nervous wreck. To be perfectly honest, she already knew Jun. They went to the same school, and had gym together. It was there that she had witnessed the assistant coach who always screamed himself hoarse take a powerful kick to the stomach. Then a ride to the emergency room with fractured ribs.

 

Jun ended up being suspended for three months, which explained why she was in her family’s shop instead of at school.

 

“ ‘Eeeeyy, blondie. See sometin’ ya like?”

 

Lilly glanced around the shop. There was nobody else down there but her and the two J’s.

 

“Up ‘ere, mon.”

 

She looked up.

 

There was a shrunken head staring at her with beady brown eyes. Its skin was dried and wrinkly, and it was hanging by its hair tie. She stared at it for five seconds. It said “No touchin’ da merchandise.”

 

“AAAAAHHHH!!!!”

 

It didn’t take Jillian more than a minute to acknowledge the girl behind the case. “What are you doing?” she deadpanned. Lilly pointed at the shrunken head. “Th-th-th-that thing’s alive!!” she whimpered through chattering teeth. 

 

“Damn right I’m alive! ‘Ow many other shrunken heads y’see in here?” The head snorted. “Nobody, dat’s who!”

 

Jun sent the head a half-hearted glance. “That’s Terrence.” she said. “Lan had the bright idea to have a shrunken head as a greeter. He doesn’t do a very good job, seeing how he’s just a head.”

 

“I’ll ‘ave you know I’m a model employee!” Terrence squawked. “Heh. Y’all should be workin’ for me! Y’all Orients don’ know how ta’run dis place.” Jun walked up to the head and smacked him. Terrence started flying back and forth like a tetherball. “Ah-ah-ah-ah!!” He glared at Jun. “I hate it when ya do that.”

 

Lilly slowly pulled her beanie over her face. Why would Lan even think of having a shrunken-head greeter in the first place? That was crazy, even for a shop like this one!

 

As if on cue, Lan came down the stairs and stopped next to her sister. “Find everything okay?” she chirped. Lilly laughed awkwardly. “Yeah..”

 

“Yeah.” Jillian set a box of bullets and a gallon of something else on the glass counter. “Ready when you are, Lan.” Lan smiled eagerly and scooted behind the counter. She typed a few numbers into the old-looking cash register. “That’ll be $5.39.” she said.

 

Jillian fished through her pocket and pulled out a ten-dollar bill. “Cash okay?”   
  


“Hell yes!”

 

Lan took the bill from Jillian and mashed a couple more buttons. The bottom of the register opened with a loud  _ ding!! _ . Lan fished the change out of the register and dropped it into Jillian’s hands. “There y’go!” she smiled. “Come again soon!”

 

Jillian rolled her eyes. “I have to.” she said. “If you guys didn’t exist, the nearest supply shop would be an hour from here.” She stuffed the box and bottle in her backpack and turned around. “Come on, Lilly, let’s go-”

 

She wasn’t halfway through her sentence when Lilly was out the door.   
  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


 

“You call THAT a supply run?!” Lilly groaned when they got back to the bunker. “That was boring as hell!!”

 

“It’s an errand. It’s not supposed to be entertaining.” Jillian set her backpack on the table. She unzipped the back and removed the items she’d purchased. “High school’s boring, but you still hafta do it.”

 

“Yeah, but they’ve got the law behind ‘em!” Lilly said. “There’s no  _ law _ against not getting supplies!” She watched Jillian open the box of bullets and empty some into her guns. “Can I at least check out a weapon?” she asked, reaching toward the pistol Jillian had neglected. This resulted in getting her hand smacked.

 

Lilly clutched her stinging hand. “What the hell?!” Jillian glared at her from under the sunhat. “I told you, Lilly. My guns, my rules.” she said. She picked up the other pistol and began filling it with bullets. “And my rule is if you’re not qualified enough, you can’t touch ‘em.”

 

The blonde glared at her. “Y’know, I’m starting to think that I hallucinated all that crap last night. Maybe Abbey  _ wasn’t  _ some kinda freaky monster.”

 

Jillian shrugged. “Believe whatever the hell you feel like.” she sighed. “I’m not stoppin’ you. Unlike that one terrorist group--” She paused. “What was that one group in the mid-1900’s? They started a war, really f@#ked up some countries?” She shrugged. “Eh, it’ll come to me.”

 

Lilly knit her eyebrows. “Seriously? I say I have doubts and you make a Nazi-Germany refere-”

 

“Not the Nazis, that other guy! I think he was Russian or something.”

 

“Well, I’m not Russian to find out if you’re taking this seriously.” Lilly muttered. Jillian dropped the gallon near Lilly’s ear. This resulted in a loud noise and the blonde herself nearly falling off the chair. “What the he-” She stopped short when she found Jillian’s piercing gaze locked on her.

 

Jillian slammed her palms on the table, making Lilly jump again. “Listen, Lilly.” she hissed in a low tone. “Until last night, soul-sucking monsters only came in suits and ties. You can deny it all you want, but you saw it.” Her eyes narrowed. “Once you brush with those things, life is never the same. You  _ always _ have to be on guard, because the darkness is always waiting for you to mess up. No matter what corner of the world you run to,  _ they are always  _ **_there._ ** ”

 

Lilly cowered behind the chair, shaking like a madman. This was more than enough for her to decide that Jillian didn’t exactly have people skills. She nodded quickly. Jillian turned back to the bullets she was emptying into her guns.

 

Clutching her hand, Lilly stood up and left the room. ‘ _ Damn. _ ’ she thought to herself. ‘What am I getting myself into? Maybe I should just go find my aunt and live there.’ She shook her head. ‘ _ No, that wouldn’t feel right. Jillian saved my life twice. What kind of thank-you would running off be? _ ’

 

She stopped her aimless wandering and looked up. She was near the bunker’s exit. She furrowed her eyebrows. “Man.” she sighed. “I need some air.” She glared behind her before climbing up the ladder.

  
  
  


The crisp autumn silence was disturbed as Lilly stormed through the forest. The leaves were crushed underneath her sneakers. “Stupid Jillian.” she muttered. “Thinks I can’t do nothin’ on my own. I’ll show her.”

 

As she went further down the park trail, she saw a something white sticking out from one of the ditches. Not white like old man hair, like really, screaming white. “Is…” she said. “Is that a cosplayer?”

 

She ran towards the ditch, and what she saw was certainly unorthodox. There was a young man lying down in the ditch, his eyes closed in a serene expression and his hands folded over his chest.

 

‘ _ Oh, my god. _ ’ Lilly began to panic. ‘ _ What if he’s dead?? _ ’

 

The boy’s eyes snapped open. They were the most enchanting shade blue Lilly had ever seen. They weren’t the brightest blue, but they weren’t exactly  _ dark _ blue either.

 

A minute passed before either of them spoke. “Nice to meet you.” the boy said, his tone oozing sarcasm. “I’m tryin’ to take a nap here.” Lilly blinked. ‘ _ Oh, God, he’s  _ _ alive! _ ’

 

“I-uh,” she stammered. “I thought you were-”

 

“Is there _some_ _reason_ a guy can’t take a nap in a ditch in the park?” the boy snapped. He sat up in the ditch. “Or does that _confuse_ you?” Lilly furrowed her eyebrows. She was starting to wonder why she even went over to the ditch. He snapped his fingers in her face. “Oi, wake up. I’m talking here.” He sighed. “Ah, what’s the point? You won’t listen, anyway.” He got to his feet and started to walk away.

 

“H-hold on!” she called. “Don’t go away-I mean-”

 

The boy stopped short. He turned around slightly, blue eyes full of wonder. “You can see me?” he whispered. Lilly furrowed her eyebrows. “Uh, yeah-”

 

The boy practically threw himself at her and hugged her tightly. “You can see me!!” he squealed. “You can see me!!” Lilly almost fell into the ditch when he hit her. This guy  _ looked _ scrawny, but he was strong as hell. She felt like her organs were gonna explode.

 

She tried to pry him off, but to no avail. “Can you..” she strained. “Get  _ off _ me?” The boy looked up at her. He smiled sheepishly and let go of her midsection. Lilly staggered back and bent forward, taking in as much sweet, sweet oxygen as possible. “Who…” she asked between gulps of air. “Who  _ are _ you?”

 

“Weeeeeell,” The white-haired boy smirked playfully. “ _ I _ am a wood sprite. I live over in the forest, y’see.”

 

Lilly blinked. This guy was a fairy? She gave the boy a double-take. Pure-white hair that framed a youthful, fair-skinned face and showcased ethereal blue eyes. His outfit was bright and sparkly, further emphasizing a childish outlook.

 

“Okay….” she said. “If you’re a fairy..does that mean you can grant wishes?”

 

“No.”

 

“Dangit.”

 

The fairy smiled mischievously. “But I can do this.” He held out his palm and a mini snowstorm materialized in the air. He pointed at the snowflakes. “Eh? Eh?” Lilly raised an eyebrow. “Come on!!” he pleaded. “Ask me something a fairy would know!!”

 

Lilly shook her head. “I don’t feel like it. But..” She eyed him curiously. “You wouldn’t mind doing me a solid, would you? There’s this kid I know, and I really wanna show ‘er up.”

 

“Hmm,” The fairy rubbed his chin. “You  _ did _ wake me up from a very important nap…” he mused. Lilly felt her heart speed up. “On the other hand..I do like showing people up.” The fairy beamed at her. “Alright, kid. You got yourself a deal!”

 

“Great!! Lilly smiled and shook his hand. “See ya!!” Lilly waved at him and headed back to the forest. The fairy watched her go, an oddly-dark glint in his bright-colored eyes…

 

He cupped his hands and yelled “Town’s the other way!”

 

Lilly’s voice came from afar in a resounding “DANGIT!”

  
  
  


Jillian knit her eyebrows. “God damnit…” she muttered. She glared at the tiny wooden thing before her. “How much longer is this gonna take??”   
  


“I’m ba-ack!”

 

Jillian looked up from whatever she was doing. “Where the hell have you been?” she snapped. “You can’t just run off like that. You gotta take a number.” She picked up her water bottle and took a swig.

 

“For your information-” Lilly smirked confidently. “I just met a fairy.”

 

Jillian spit out her water and coughed. Her eyes widened in disbelief. “A  _ fairy? _ ”

 

“Weeeell, a wood sprite, actually.” Lilly corrected herself. “He’s a real sweetheart. He showed me back to the town after I got myself lost.”

 

Jillian wiped her mouth. “Look, I have NO idea if what you’re telling me is true, but I can tell you one thing--” She knit her eyebrows. “Fairies are NO JOKE. They pull the wings off butterflies for  _ fun. _ ”

 

Lilly put her hands on her hips. “Says you! Have you ever actually seen one?”

 

“Yes, and I’m tellin’ you, for the love of God-”

 

“Well, so what?!” Lilly retorted. “Just because the ones  _ you _ met were bad doesn’t mean ALL of them are!”

 

“Lilly,” Jillian set the bottle down on the counter. “I’ve been involved with the paranormal for a decade now. I have a  _ lot  _ more expertise on this than you do. If you wanna go cause a disaster, that’s fine-” She looked her dead in the eye. “-but don’t doubt for a second that I could help you prevent it.”

 

Lilly was silent for a few seconds. Her hands balled into fists. “Y-yeah, well what do you know?!” she said. “I’m just as good at shooting things as you are!”   
  


“No, you’re not.”

 

“And another thing-” Lilly jabbed a finger in her direction. “You’ve been putting me down since I got here! How about a little faith, huh?!”

 

“Lilly-”

 

“Don’t ‘Lilly’ me!!”

 

Someone tapped Lilly’s shoulder and she screamed. Jun was standing behind her again. Lilly jumped forward. “Fer God’s sake, Jun!!” she yelled. Then she paused. “When the hell did you get here?”

 

Jun tilted her head and blinked. “What’s with all the screaming?”

 

“Lilly’s feeling unappreciated.” Jillian said, turning her attention away from the wooden thing.

 

“I am not! I’m just feeling kind of neglected!” Lilly said. She turned to Jun. “And you still haven’t answered my question!”

 

“That’s the same thing, isn't it?”

 

“What?”

 

Jun blinked. “Is feeling unappreciated and feeling neglected the same thing?”

 

Jillian looked up. “I think it is.”

 

Lilly’s face turned red. “Well, if you're so sure, then I guess-I mean-” She groaned dramatically. “That freakin’ does it!” She stormed out of the room. Seven seconds later, the trapdoor slammed shut once again. Jillian glanced at Jun. “You feel like goin’ after her?”

 

Jun shrugged.

 

“Yeah, me too.”

  
  


Lilly grit her teeth as she once again stormed through the forest. Why did Jillian have to kill all her fun? All she wanted to do was help, and she spouted some crap about destroying the town. How shallow was that?

 

“Hey, kid!” Lilly looked up. It was the same fairy she’d met earlier. He tilted his head. “Why so grumpy?” he asked. Lilly glared at the ground. “Nothin’.” she said.

 

The fairy shrugged. “Well, okay. If you say so.” He stuck out his hand. “C’mon, I wanna show you somethin’.”

 

Lilly rubbed her chin. “Hmm..” she muttered. “A walk in the woods with someone I just met and know nothing about.” She thought for a moment before she shrugged. “I don’t see anything wrong with that.”

 

The fairy’s eyes lit up. “Great!” he said. He grabbed her by the wrist and dragged her deeper into the forest.   
  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


 

A few minutes later, the fairy stopped running at an ungodly speed and gestured to the setting in front of him. “Here we are!!” he proclaimed. “Prepare to be amazed!!” Lilly opened her eyes. They arrived at a large clearing laden with frost-encrusted foliage and moss-covered trees. The air had suddenly gotten colder, and a sense of silence had washed over the forest.

 

“Uh..” Lilly blinked. “You wanted to show me indigenous plant life?”

 

“Look to your left.”

 

Lilly did as she was told.

 

“Your other left.”

 

She turned her head again and jumped back. There was a grizzly bear on its side, except it was definitely not asleep. Its stomach had been sliced open and its insides spilled out on the forest floor. There were two black holes where its eyes should’ve been, and someone had carved a crudely-drawn smile on its snout.

 

“Whaddya think?” the fairy asked. “Pretty slick, eh?” He gestured to the mutilated bear. “Big guy was makin’ a huge ruckus, so I made him shut up.”

 

Lilly stared at the fallen animal. She felt her blood go cold. “There’s no way a fairy could’ve done that.” She clenched her fists and glared up at the boy. “What are you?!”

 

“Uh, hel-LO? White hair, blue eyes, ice powers?” The boy smirked. “You tell me.”

 

Lilly’s thoughts began racing. White hair, blue eyes and ice powers. She’d heard of someone like that before. If only she could remember his name. A violent breeze hit her in the face, the cold air nipping at her nose--

 

The ice. Blue eyes. Her nose.

 

The realization hit her like a bag full of bricks. “You…” She pointed a finger at him as her blood ran cold. “You’re JACK FROST!!!!”

 

“DUH.” Jack rolled his eyes. “That took  _ way _ too long, kid. Read a book once in a while.”

 

Lilly scrambled backwards, trying desperately to put some distance between them. ‘ _ Oh my God. _ ’ she thought. ‘ _ My second day as a ghost hunter and I run into  _ _ Jack Frost _ _. Is this how Jillian had to deal with it? _ ’

 

Jack laughed cruelly. “Jeez, Lilly. I’m just messin’ with ya.” he taunted. He pulled a branch off a nearby tree and grinned. “Chill out, will ya?” He raised the branch over his head.

 

Somebody’s foot rammed into Jack’s stomach and he went flying across the landscape. There stood Jun, towering over Lilly and staring at her with cold empty eyes. Seconds later she dove the direction she’d sent Jack flying in. “Lilly!!” Jillian ran over to the blonde and pulled her to her feet. “What the hell did you think you were doing?!”

 

Lilly struggled to make sense of what had just happened and simultaneously come up with a reason as to why she’d had a complete heart attack. “I was trying to catch a goblin-”

 

“REALLY?” Jillian said in an exaggerated tone. “And here I thought Medusa had gotten to you!”

 

They completely ignored Jack and Jun flying past them.

 

“Uh, hey.” Jun deadpanned as she blocked a flurry of punches from Jack. “Little help over here.”

 

“Yeah, we’re comin’, Jun.” Jillian cocked her pistol. She glared at Lilly. “You are damn lucky I’m letting you go right now.” she said before turning to help Jun. She held up a pistol and fired. Jack leaned to the side and watched the bullet fly right past him. 

 

He grinned childishly. “Not your best shot!~” he cooed, dodging a vicious kick from Jun. “I was hopin’ you’d be bringin’ your A-game with you this time!”

 

Jillian’s eyebrow twitched. “Son of a..” She fired another bullet, which Jack dodged fairly easily. He stuck his tongue out at her. While he was(sort of)distracted, Jun ran up a tree and attempted to kick the back of his head.

 

Lilly watched them from the dead bear. In only twenty hours, she’d seen a life-sucking monster, a shrunken head that talked, and one of the most dangerous spirits there could probably ever be. What could she do? Jillian was definitely better in skill sets than she was and Jun was on a level of strength she could never attempt to be.

 

“Okay, think, Lilly.” she muttered. “You made this mess, now you’ve gotta clean it up. Think!” She scanned her surroundings. “What could you use for-” Her eyes landed on the branch Jack had been carrying. “Hey..” Her eyes lit up. “Maybe I’ll start with a broom.”

 

She waited until Jack’s back was turned. When the moment was right, a rush of adrenaline coursed through her and she ran out from the safety of the bear carcass and snatched the staff from the ground. She gripped it for a few seconds.

 

“Hey, Jack!!” she called. Jack looked behind him. “Look what I got!!” Lilly held the staff over her head.

 

Jack froze in place. “Don’t do it.” he warned. Lilly held it higher. “Don’t you  _ f@#king _ do i-”

 

Lilly suddenly dropped her arms. She looked at the staff in confusion. A mischievous grin spread across her face. She held the stick like a bat, charged at Jack and started whaling on him with it. Jack cried in pain and fell on his side. He put his hands over his head in a feeble attempt to protect himself. 

 

“Don’t hit me!” he wailed. “I’m not as hard as I look!!” Lilly stopped hitting him, but kept the stick above her head. “So you admit you were wrong?” she said.

 

Jack sniffed. “Yes!”

 

“You admit  _ all  _ tricksters wrong?”

 

“Yes!”

 

“You admit you’re a complete jackass?”

 

“NO!” Lilly hit him with the stick again. “Okay, okay!”

 

Lilly glared down at him. “Get outta my sight.”

 

Jack wasted no time getting to his feet. He scrambled towards the forest. When he reached the forest’s edge, he turned around and glared at her. “This isn’t over.” He coughed into his hand and stared at it in horror. The earth around him began to freeze over. “You’ll pay for this!!!” His eyes glowed bright-blue, and in a whirl of snow and ice, he was gone.

 

“Sure, pal.” Lilly muttered. “Real sure.”

  
  
  
  


“I can’t believe it.” Lilly said, staring at the ceiling of the bunker. “Jack Frost, beaten by a stick.” She held up Mittens and beamed. “How many people can claim that, eh?” Mittens meowed in response and licked her nose. “Still..”

 

She slumped over on the table. “Why did Jillian make me stay here by myself??” she groaned. “I beat him! Why am I getting punished for it?”

 

“Because you could’ve gotten us all in huge trouble.”

 

Lilly jumped and held Mittens to her chest. Jillian was coming down the ladder with a box under her arm. “Jun and I could’ve turned into popsicles because of you.” she scolded. Lilly looked at the floor.

 

“Yeah, I know..” she said. “It’s just…” Lilly brought her feet on her chair and hugged her knees. “I guess when you decided to take me in, I wanted to prove that I  _ wasn’t _ a complete nuisance. Jack took advantage of that. He made me feel like I could  _ do _ something for you, and...”

 

Jillian smacked her head. “Lilly, for God’s sake!” she said. “You’ve bailed me out twice now, and that’s more than enough payment.” Lilly rubbed the back of her head. “Besides,” Jillian continued. “You managed to fend off  _ Jack Frost  _ with a tree branch. I think that’s more than enough proof that you belong here.”

 

Lilly smiled. “Thanks, Jillian..”

 

“And here’s your reward.” Jillian set the boxes on the table. It was filled with various grocery items like milk, vegetables, and pasta. “We’re havin’ Italian for dinner.”

 

Lilly’s mouth watered. She pumped her fists in the air. “Whoo-hoo!!” she cheered.

 

“And guess who’s joining you?~”

 

“Eh?” Lilly turned around and saw Lan coming down the ladder with another box. “Jillian invited us!” she chirped. “Isn’t this gonna be fun?” She hopped off the ladder and Jun came down after her, holding two more boxes.

 

“It’s the least I could do after you got them into so much trouble.” Jillian took the one of the boxes from Jun and set it on the counter. “That fiasco could’ve cost them their jobs  _ and  _ their licences.”

 

“Wait, licences?”

 

“You think it’s LEGAL to sell enchanted knives?” Lan yelled from the other room. "Ha! I don’t think so!”

 

“It’s a bit of both, actually.” Jun said.

 

Lilly rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah.” She rolled up her sleeves. “Now let’s make us some...uh…”

 

“Pasta puttanesca.”

 

“What the hell is that?”

 

Jun shrugged. “No idea.”

 

Lan slammed an old-looking cookbook on the table. “Let’s find out!”

  
  
  


Somewhere in the forest, Jack stumbled deeper into a cave. “F@#king brats…” He grit his teeth. “They’re gonna regret messin’ with me..”

 

He leaned onto the cave wall and took in the sight before him. A large cavern that had once housed spectacular plant life, now decorated with ice and snow. He took a deep breath and staggered into the cavern. The frozen grass crunched underneath his feet, and he fell to the ground under a frozen birch tree.

 

The fading moonlight cast and unearthly shadow on his face. Jack glared at it. “Oh, shut up.” he muttered. “So I lost to some mortal kids. Big deal.” He mustered a devious grin. “They aren’t gonna be celebrating much longer.”

 

Jack’s eyes slowly closed, and he fell into a restless sleep for the first time in over two hundred years.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
**_End of Chapter Two_ **

  
  


**_A Due-North Studios Production_ **

 

**_Director/Producer: Chi Kusho_ **

 

**_Co-Producer/Creative Consultant: Fibonaccithegeek_ **

 

**_Associate Co-Producer/Motivational Specialist: CreepySarah16_ **

 

**_Story: Chi Kusho_ **

 

**_Editing: Fibonaccithegeek_ **

 

**_Characters: CreepySarah16 and Chi Kusho_ **

 

**_Art by Chi_ **

 

**_Starring:_ **

**_Madeleine Martin as Lilly Anderson_ **

**_Alexandra Daddario as Jillian Rothkiss_ **

**_Trina Nishimura as Jun Zhao_ **

**_Jessica Calvello as Lan Zhao_ **

**_Mark Allen Jr. as Jack Frost_ **

**_Guest-starring Phil LaMarr as Terrence the Shrunken Head and Ray Chase as Mysterious Caller._ **

  
**_This story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to characters living or dead is completely coincidental. All rights reserved to Due-North Studios._ **


	3. Chapter III: Frozen Heart

**_The Lost Ones:_ **

**_Chapter III: Frozen Heart_ **

  
  
  
  
  


…

 

_ Wham! _

 

…

 

_ “Kyorugi joonbi!” _

 

…

 

…

 

_ “Ichi!” _

 

…

 

_ “...bakkat chagi!!” _

 

_ Whud! _

 

_ Bakkat. Najundi Makgi. Chookya Makgi. Ttwieo chagi. On mondollyo chagi. _

 

_ Yield. _

  
  
  
  


Jun slid her t-shirt over her head. Another day, another dollar, another taekwondo class thoroughly butchered. It was always the same routine. She didn’t mind, though. Consistency meant that things were peaceful.

 

A hushed voice caught her ear. Jun glanced behind her at two gossipy girls. “Where have I seen her before?” whispered the brunette. “She looks so familiar, but I can’t put my finger on it.”

 

“She’s that kid from Phys Ed.” her friend whispered back. “You know, the one that got suspended last month?”

 

“Oh!” the brunette said. “Now I remember! Why is she so quiet all the time?”

 

Her friend scoffed. “She probably thinks she’s better than us. I bet she mouths off to her friends.”

 

“I don’t think she  _ has _ friends.”

 

“Who knows? With a kick like her’s, it’s no wonder people keep their distance.” The brunette’s friend began walking away. “Don’t wanna end up in the ER.”

 

Jun glanced over her shoulder. The gossipy girls saw her looking at them and froze. Jun blinked slowly before zipping up her hoodie and grabbing her bag. She walked out of the locker room in dead silence.

 

She scanned the lobby of the dojo. Parents were there to greet their children, or to drop them off. Kids were either rushing to their families or rushing to the locker room.

 

“Hey Jun!!!”

 

Standing at the doorway was Lilly and her sister, both in layers of winter clothes. Lilly waved her over, a big smile on her face. “I saw all of that! That was amazing!! You’re like Bruce Lee or something!” she squealed. Her eyes sparkled in awe. “How do you do it??”

 

Jun blinked twice. She glanced back at the window into the training room. “Patience.” she droned. “And stamina.”

 

Lan giggled hysterically. “And a huge-ass attention span. I wouldn’t last a day in there!” She slung an arm around her sister and began to lead her out of the dojo. “Man, I’m starving.”

 

Lilly’s eyes lit up. “Ooh! I know! Let’s go to that new ramen place they built downtown!” She drooled. “I’ve been dying to go there ever since they opened it!”

 

Jun found herself blocking out some of their conversation. She glanced over her shoulder, barely getting a look at a short redheaded girl sulking on the bench nearby. The gossipy girls from before were pointing at her and laughing to themselves.

 

She was used to things like this. It made her mad at first, but as she became older, she learned that sometimes, you just have to let it go.

  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


 

The shopping center was bustling with activity on the chilly autumn afternoon. The temperature was odd for a Wednesday, but you didn’t hear the shopkeepers complaining. Chilly weather means more customers. People would be dying to get into the heated stores to escape the cold, and the longer they stayed, the likelier they’d be tricked into buying something.

 

Even on cold days, the center would be flooded with antsy middle-aged folks who just rolled out of bed, elderly couples on the benches with their pigeons, and teenagers who skipped classes in favor of their cell phones. Two of these teens, however, had a much different agenda. They had parked themselves on the corner of 45th Street and were trying to catch their breath. The raven had leaned against the wall of a building, and the blonde was holding herself up on the street pole. The raven cast her accomplice a tired glare. “God damnit, Lilly,” she huffed. “Why did we have to do this?”

 

Lilly glanced behind her. “Come on, man. Like you haven’t done worse!” she said. The raven glared at her. “Supernatural extermination is perfectly legal.” she retorted. She looked at the dark-green backpack in Lilly’s hands, the very item they had just risked their heads for. “Breaking and entering, on the other hand-”

 

“But this is important!!” Lilly cried. She held the backpack close. “If we didn’t get this, then there would be major consequences.  _ Trust _ me!”

 

Jillian rolled her eyes. “It’s not a matter of trust, it’s a matter of principle. I don’t want the cops on my ass because of some stupid papers!”

 

Lilly gasped dramatically. “ _ Stupid? _ ” she asked incredulously. “These ‘stupid’ papers can turn your situation into a matter of life and death!”

 

“Why would I risk my ass for Jun’s math homework?!”

 

Lilly pulled the folder of papers out of her backpack. “Because I promised Lan I would do it in exchange for ramen.” she said. Jillian groaned. “Oh, my God.” She leaned back against the brick wall. “Why didn’t she ask her parents to get it? Or better yet, why didn’t she get it herself?”

 

The blonde shrugged. “I snooped through the principal’s desk and found out she’s not allowed on school property.”

 

“Seriously? Why?”

 

“Something about a chemistry demonstration and, I quote, ‘dangerous and inappropriate use of firearms’.” Lilly sweatdropped.

 

“Sounds like Lan, alright.” Jillian breathed through her nose. She rubbed her temples and sighed. “Alright, we’ll give her the stupid math homework. We gotta make a stop at the Zhaos’ anyway.” She got off the wall and turned the corner. Lilly shoved the folder in her bag, zipped it up, and followed Jillian down the street.

 

“Man,” Lilly wrapped her arms around herself. “Is it just me, or did we suddenly move to the North Pole?”

 

Jillian pulled her jacket closed. “It’s post-battle complaining.” she said. Her breath came out in steam-like puffs. “Looks like  _ someone _ isn’t too happy about us beating his ass.”

 

It took Lilly a few seconds to process what she was talking about. Then she said “Oh, right! We did beat him up!” She grabbed the straps of her backpack and pulled forward. “With a switch, too. I can’t believe it was that eas-”

 

A large gust of wind hit her in the face. “Ack!” The wind died down after a few seconds and left Lilly with disheveled hair and a waperjad beanie. She blew some hair out of her eyes before noticing Jillian’s odd expression. “Come on.” Lilly scoffed, moving her beanie back into place. “We haven’t seen Jack for a month!! He’s gotta miles away by now.”

 

“It’s only been like, a week, Lilly.” Jillian said. “Something tells me we’re not outta the woods yet.”

  
  
  
  


The bells above the door chimed as the girls entered the shop. “Hey, Lan! We’re here!” Lilly called. The person behind the desk didn’t respond. Lilly cocked her head. “Lan?” she asked.

 

The cashier lowered their book. Behind it was a young man with light-blue eyes and messy blue hair. He donned a blue shirt, a dark-blue vest, gray dress pants and a pair of slacks. “Lan’s not here.” he said. “I’m filling in for her.”

 

Jillian blinked. “That’s weird, because Lan’s never sick.” she said. The man turned a page in his book. “Understandable. I was hired yesterday.” he said. He stared at them from behind the book. “And as John Locke might say, I have a right to my freedom of choice.” He set his book down on the desk and folded his arms.

 

“Wow, you’re smart!!” Lilly said. “You gotta be when you’re reading-” She picked up the book Oscar was reading. Her face twisted in disgust. “A  _ textbook?! _ Eww!” She tossed the book back on the counter.

 

Jillian smacked the back of Lilly’s head and picked up Oscar’s book. “‘ _ Technical Engineering Volume II _ ’.” she read. She glanced up at Oscar curiously. “This says University of Oregon. Don’t they need this?”

 

Oscar took the textbook from her. “I’m borrowing it, you little brat.” he snapped. The girls’ eyes widened. Oscar’s face changed to “Oh shit, I’ve been caught” before he coughed. He ran a hand through his hair. “I apologize, I..I haven’t slept much, and my mind isn’t what you could call ‘present’ as of late.”

 

“Well, that explains the circles under your eyes.”

 

As if on cue, Lan poked her head out from the back corridor. Lilly screamed and clung to Jillian. Lan laughed and rolled her eyes. “Sup, everybody?” she said. Oscar turned around. “Oh, Lan.” he said. “I was just about to throw these smart alecks outsi-”

 

“It’s okay, Oscar.” Lan interrupted. “I’ll take it from here. You can head home.” Oscar glanced half-heartedly at the duo. He sighed, picked up his book, and exited the shop. The bell rang upon his leaving, which gave Lan the “all-clear”. “So, girls,” she smiled. “Looking for Jun?”

 

Lilly nodded. “Yeah, I’m here to give her the homework she missed.” She held up her backpack. Lan squealed and clapped her hands. “You’re the be-est!~” she sang. She crushed Lilly in a hug. “Jun’s upstairs..you remember where the basement is?” she asked. Lilly nodded again. Lan leaned close and whispered “Open the closet.” She let go of Lilly and waved her away.

 

Jillian glared up at her. “Did you  _ have  _ to have us break in on a school day?” she asked. “I almost didn’t get away. And I  _ always  _ get away!” She shuddered. “Those hall monitors are tougher than they get credit for.” She looked over her shoulder. “Who was that guy? Seemed a little off his rocker.”

 

“That’s Oscar.” Lan said. She put a hand on her hip. “Dad was lookin’ for a new cashier a few days ago, and then this guy shows up. Practically begged Dad for the job.” She shrugged. “Well, he did just come over from Oregon. Maybe he needs somethin’ t’help get back on his feet.”

 

Jillian glanced at the floor for a second. “Your antique shop probably isn’t the best remedy for college dropouts.” she muttered. Lan shrugged again. “Yeah, but what’re ya gonna do? In the meantime, what can I do for ya?” she asked, leaning over the counter. “Anything special?”

 

“You can say that.” Jillian quickly glanced around the shop to make sure nobody was around. Then she leaned towards Lan and whispered “I need a gun, Lan. A good one.”

 

Lan cocked an eyebrow. “Seriously? Don’t you have like, 50?”

 

“No, that’s you guys.” Jillian said, rolling her eyes. “Normally, I wouldn’t ask you this, cuz...well, I know how you get.” She sighed loudly. “But Lilly needs a weapon, and I’m a little short on options.”

 

Lan’s eyes sparkled. “Well, then,” she said as a maniacal grin spread across her face. “You’ve come to the right place.”

  
  
  
  


Lilly headed up the stairs until she reached a whitewashed door. It had a mail slot on it, and a sliding peephole you didn’t really see anymore. She reached up and knocked on the wood.

 

The peephole slid open faster than she thought. “We don’t want any!” came a heavily-accented voice. Lilly glanced at the ground. “Ah..” She held up her bookbag. “I’m here to give Jun her homework?”

 

Another voice hissed from the other side “Open up, Weimin. It’s one of Jun’s schoolfriends.” The peephole slid shut. The clicking of various locks were heard before the door opened. A slouching Asian man stood in the doorway. He had a receding hairline and big round glasses. “Welcome to our home!” he said. “Come on in!”

 

Lilly nodded hesitantly and stepped inside. The flat was rather modest, save for the oriental decor. Another staircase sat in the background, which made her wonder just how big this building really was.

 

There was a short woman in the kitchen area. She was round around the edges and had short dark hair. Lilly cleared her throat and the woman turned around. She smiled at her. “Ah, you must be Jillian’s assistant!” the woman said. “I’m Hualing, Jun’s mother. Jun is in her room.” She pointed down the hall. “If there’s anything we can do for you, don’t hesitate to scream.”

 

There was a loud  _ bang!!  _ downstairs, followed by a scream.

  
  


Jillian resurfaced from the pile of broken shelves and sent Lan an angry glare. “God damnit, woman! Ever heard of subtlety?!”

  
  


“See?” Mrs. Zhao giggled. “We’re so busy!”

 

As Lilly headed up another flight of stairs, she let her eyes wander to the pictures on the wall. There was a ten-year-old Jun and somewhat-younger versions of her parents standing in front of the dojo. Jun was holding a large trophy in her hands, and she looked pretty bored. What struck Lilly as a bit odd was that Lan didn’t seem to be in any of the pictures. Maybe she was camera-shy.

 

It didn’t take too long to find Jun’s door. You could practically taste the depression coming off it. Lilly hesitantly raised a fist. Should she really knock on someone’s door if she barely knew them?

 

Well, girl scouts didn’t have any problem doing it. Neither did trick-or-treaters. Or Jehovah’s Witnesses.

 

A few seconds after the knock, the knob twisted and the door opened to reveal Jun’s face. “Hey, Lilly.” she droned. Lilly smiled. “Hey, uh,” She held up her backpack. “Lan asked me to bring your homework over after your practice yesterday.”

 

Jun nodded wordlessly. Lilly glanced to her left. “Uh, can I come in?”

 

Jun shrugged and opened the door wider. Lilly smiled and stepped inside. The room was dark in lighting, because the shades were somewhat drawn. It was very neat, with everything stacked on a shelf or something placed neatly in a drawer.

 

“Where do you want the-”

 

“Just set it on the desk.”

 

Lilly blinked. She fished through the backpack and took out the folder. She set it on the desk in the corner and glanced back at Jun. She felt a little weird not making much effort to get to know Jun as a person. “Have you met the new cashier yet?” she asked. Jun shrugged. “I guess so. He was hired yesterday.”

 

“So, what’s the story?” Lilly asked, sitting on the end of Jun’s bed. “He seems pretty damn bitchish to me.”

 

“Yeah.” Jun said. “Dad hired him yesterday, so that’s probably why.”

 

The blonde inspected Jun’s features. Something about her seemed a bit...what’s the word for it? Strained? “Is something wrong?” she asked.

 

Jun looked at the floor. “I don’t know how to say this,” she said. “But he kind of throws me off. It’s like he’s from another dimension or something.” Jun’s eyes looked like they were going to burn a hole in the floor. “I don’t like it. Whatever’s going on with him, it can’t be good,  _ period. _ ”

 

Lilly glanced at Jun. In the very short window of time she’d known the Asian girl, she hadn’t seen her get like this. “Well,” she said, stretching a little. “Maybe you could try talking to him. It doesn’t hurt to socialize, y’know.”

 

“Yeah…” Jun muttered to herself. No, that wasn’t a good idea. Talking to him wouldn’t do the cause much good. He’d dodge all her questions. This was going to require some more extreme approaches… “Maybe we could observe him as he goes about his day to get a better grip on his lifestyle.”

 

“You mean stalking?”

 

“If you think about it from a fixed mindset.” Jun said. “We’re only observing his behavior.”

 

“...from behind a plant.”

 

Jun squinted at Lilly. “Who said we’re hiding from people?”

  
  
  
  


Lilly blinked. “This,” she said. “Is definitely stalking.”

 

She and Jun were bundled up in winter clothes, seated at a locally-known coffee shop facing the street. They had been watching Oscar’s every move for the past three hours.

 

So far, their efforts had yielded nothing of value.

 

Lilly’s coat pocket began to vibrate. She reached inside her pocket and pulled out her phone. To her dismay, it was the same ‘ _ Unknown Number _ ’. ‘ _ Oh, great. _ ’ she groaned internally. Lilly pressed the button and held the phone to her ear. “What?”

 

_ “Someone doesn’t sound too happy.” _ rasped the familiar voice. Lilly rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah.” she sassed. “What do you want this time? Are you gonna give me some kinda pointless advice again?”

 

_ “Now, Lilly, that hurts. I mean really, that hurts.” _ said the man.  _ “I’m just calling to congratulate you on your first spirit hunt.” _ He paused as a vicious burst of wind cut through the town.  _ “..and from the looks of it, I’d say you won.” _

 

Lilly scoffed. “Oh, you saw that?”

 

_ “I see everything.” _

 

“Riiight.” Lilly pinched the bridge of her nose. 

 

A flash of blue caught her eye. Lilly glanced at the crosswalk and saw a teenage boy in a dark-brown trenchcoat. His outfit didn’t catch her eye, it was his strikingly dark-blue hair. ‘Looks like him and Oscar had the same taste in hair dye.’ she laughed mentally.

 

_ “What’s so funny?” _

 

“Oh, nuthin’.” Lilly rolled her eyes. “Just thinking of somethin’ funny I heard ealie-”

 

_ “Well, stop thinking about it. My time is valuable, you know.” _

 

“Okay, okay!” Lilly breathed through her nose. “Jeez, ever heard of patience?”

 

_ “If you shoot someone, do you wonder why they’re in pain?” _

 

Lilly opened her mouth to answer, but stopped herself. There was a bright-red flip-phone in the teenage boy’s hand.

 

_ “Are you listening to me?!” _

 

Lilly paused for a moment. A light bulb went off in her head. “Uh, yeah.” she said. “Keep talkin’.” She watched the boy across the street closely. He was moving his mouth in time to the words she heard from the other end of the line.

 

Jun blinked. She turned away from Lilly and headed across the sidewalk. She believed Lilly had the correct initiative in mind when she looked toward the crosswalk. Right now, another matter needed Jun’s attention.

 

“Hey, Addie.”

 

The redhead jumped and held her scarf to her chest. She looked up. “Oh, hey, Jun.” she said, trying to steady her breathing. Jun glanced down the sidewalk. The gossipy girls hadn’t noticed her staring at them, so they kept laughing to themselves.

 

“Still can’t get past green belt, huh?”

 

Addie looked at her shoes. Her flushed cheeks were all the answer Jun needed. She sat down next to her. “Listen,” she began. “The only thing those girls know how to do is be nosy. One day, it’s gonna land them in a lot of trouble.” Addie looked up. Jun’s eyes were boring into her. “If they keep bothering you,” Jun said, her tone dead serious. “Let me know. I’ll stick it to ‘em.”

 

Addie nodded. “O-okay, uh..” She looked behind her. “Uh, m-my dad’s calling me. I better go.” She turned around and headed down the street. Halfway down the road, she looked behind her and waved at Jun.

 

Jun raised her arm a little and returned the gesture. Addie smiled at this and turned back around.

 

“Hey!!” Jun turned around. Lilly came barrelling towards her, out of breath. “Why’d you leave me there?! Weren’t you watching Oscar?”

 

Jun blinked. “I thought you were watching him.”

 

Lilly’s ears turned red. “Well, I OBVIOUSLY can’t watch someo-” She bent over and breathed heavily. She held her hand up. “Ha-hang on.” She breathed heavily for a couple more minutes. “Well, I OBVIOUSLY can’t WATCH someone when I’m ON THE PHONE!!” she yelled once she regained her breath. Jun looked around the shopping center. “Looks like we lost him.”

 

“Yeah, no kidding.” Lilly scoffed. She glared up at Jun when she noticed the odd look in her eyes. She glanced into the distance. The sun was starting to disappear behind the mountains. “Look, it’s getting kinda late.” she tried. Jun looked at her. “Why don’t we call it a night and stalk Oscar some more tomorrow?”

 

Jun was silent for a few moments. “Okay.” she said. She turned around and headed back towards the antique shop. Lilly got back to her feet and followed her.

 

They walked silently down the road until they came to the shop. “G’nigh-” The door shut on her. Lilly furrowed her eyebrows. “That was a fine ‘thank-you’.” she muttered.

 

She sighed. “Well, back to the safehouse.” she said. She started down the street and paused.

 

“...which way’s the safehouse?”

  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


 

At the Zhao’s home, the family of four was seated at a round table, in the midst of dinner. Lan  held up her fork. “Great lasagna, Mom!” she proclaimed. Her mother laughed. “Thank you. It really take a while to perfect Italian food.”

 

“So,” Mr. Zhao said, setting down his glass. “Whatchu guys think of the new hired help? I think he bring us a  _ lot _ of business.”

 

“I don’t really know, Dad.” Jun said. “Something seems off about him, I just-”

 

“Jun!” her father said. “Just ‘cause a man dyed his hair, you accuse him of being a sketch?”

 

Jun blinked. “It’s not the hair that worries me. He just seems off in general. Lan dyed her hair and I trust her.”

 

“This isn’t a matter of trust!” Her father stood halfway up in his chair. “Jun, I never put my foot down about anything in my life, and I’m putting my foot down now!!”

 

“But-”

 

“But nothing!” Her father sighed and rubbed his forehead. “Ever since puberty hit, you never been the same.”

 

“Now, hold up, Dad.” Lan held up her fork. “I think Jun might have a point here.” Jun looked down at her plate. If anyone at this table would stick up for her, Lan would.

 

Lan took another forkful of lasagna. “Oscar may not be as good for business as you’re hopin’. I saw him yell at Jill and her friend today.” She chewed her food and swallowed loudly. “He seems kinda mean. Maybe we should look for someone that’s more of a people perso-”

 

“Oh, come on!” their father groaned. “What, am I mute here? Oscar is just as fine help as any.” He slammed his hand on the table. “Just cuz Jun’s a little crazy doesn’t mean  _ you _ a little-”

 

A loud  _ creak _ made way for their silence. The elder family members turned towards the other end of the round table, where Jun was staring at the table itself. Her hair fell in front of her eyes so she looked like a cartoon character.

 

Lan creased her eyebrows. “Jun-”

 

“Forget it.” Jun’s voice cracked. “Just forget it.”

 

She stood up from the table and headed to the stairwell. She didn’t bother looking back at her family. It would merely instigate another squabble. She entered her room at the end of the hall, and slammed her bedroom door shut.

 

The impact of the door slam brought a bit of dust down on the dinner table. Mr. Zhao looked up. “What’s that about?” he wondered aloud. Their mother shrugged. Lan said nothing and stared at the bent fork on Jun’s plate.

 

‘ _ She’s not the one who’s crazy. _ ’

  
  
  
  


Lilly stared intently at the blank screen of her phone. She didn’t know why, but something wasn’t sitting right. She didn’t know whether it had something to do with Oscar or that other guy with blue hair from the crosswalk. But something was going to happen. She could feel it.

 

“See anything you like?” Lilly looked up. Jillian was standing in the doorway with a small cardboard box in her hand. Lilly shrugged. “Not really.” She poked the screen. “I’m just thinkin’.”

 

Jillian rolled her eyes. “Well, put whatever you’re thinking on hold, cuz I got somethin’ for ya.” She went over to the bed Lilly was laying on and tossed her the cardboard box. It landed safely on the quilt, where Mittens took the opportunity to paw at it. “No, kitty.” Jillian picked Mittens up and put him on the ground. “That’s people stuff.” Mittens seemingly ignored her and hopped back up on the bed.

 

Lilly picked up the box and opened it. Inside was a miniature vial of water, a pocket knife, a small Bible, and a small bag of crushed minerals. “It’s kind of like a welcome package.” Jillian said. Lilly held up the bag of minerals and squinted at it in confusion. “...bath salts?” she said.

 

“Rock salt.” Jillian corrected. Lilly examined the minerals. “It’s a good defense against spirits.”

 

Jillian looked at Lilly like she had three heads. “Jun’s worried about something?” she asked.

 

“Well, she’s obsessing over the guy her dad hired.” Lilly explained. “She thinks he might be a spirit.”

 

Jillian knit her eyebrows. She stared at the chair in thought. “That might be possible. If a powerful spirit possesses someone, the host’s appearance changes to suit the spirit’s tastes.” She shrugged. “Well, at any rate, if Jun’s doin’ the accusing, that guy better run for cover. She’s usually dead on.”

 

“Jillian?” Lilly looked up. “How many spirits are out there?” This was going off-tangent, but when Jillian said ‘powerful spirit’, she got a little worried.

 

Jillian paused. “Y’know, I’m not really sure.” she said. “I didn’t really pay much attention to what they were like. T’me, there’s only dead ones and deader ones. But Dad-” She reached under the bed. “-had the sense to classify ‘em.” Her arm came out with a tattered, overfilled briefcase. There were a bunch of papers sticking out of it, and a few patches had been sewn onto the leather.

 

Lilly’s eyes bulged. “Relax,” Jillian rolled her eyes. “He’s not the only person who did this. A bunch of people

 

Lilly nodded slowly. She attempted to pry open the briefcase, but to no avail. Jillian rolled her eyes. She took the case from Lilly and undid the flaps. “Thanks,” Lilly laughed awkwardly. “Is your dad…” she trailed off.

 

Jillian blinked. She gained a forlorn expression and sighed. “Honestly..” she said. “I don’t really know. He went missing a couple years back.”

 

“So, he’s MIA?”

 

“That’s an..odd way of putting it, but yeah. Frankly, I’m not surprised.” Jillian rubbed her forehead. “2012 was a crazy year. First the craziness in Oregon, then that lady got released from prison..sheesh.” She took off her jacket. “Must’ve been a helluva time for the Hunter’s world.”

 

The blonde nodded blankly as she read through the documents. “Yeah, yeah..” She shook her head. “Hold up, hunters?”

 

Jillian looked at her. “You know, Hunters.” she said like it was the most obvious thing ever. Lilly continued to stare at her. She tried again, “Shamans?”. Still nothing. Jillian threw her head back and groaned. “Oh, my God, EXORCISTS. Are you really  _ that _ shallow?”

 

“Well, no..” Lilly glanced at the floor. “It’s just all I ever called them  _ was _ exorcists.”

 

Jillian rolled her eyes. “Well, news flash -- there’s more than one name.” she said. She slung her jacket over her shoulder. “And in good ol’ America, we call ‘em Hunters. On account of us hunting and killing otherworldly occupants.”

  
  
  
  


A surly-looking maid trudged down the hall of the Point Pleasant Motel. She was doing her job on three hours of sleep and a bad attitude. So far, several residents had turned down the housekeeping offers, but the joke was on them. She’d come back when they were gone.

 

She knocked on the next door. “Housekeeping.” she droned

 

A man’s voice yelled “You can come back later!”

 

The maid rolled her eyes. “Sir, I can hear you in the hotel room.”

 

“I’m in the shower! You’ll have to come back later!!”

 

The maid sighed. “Sir-”

 

The door flew open to reveal an irate-looking Oscar. He was dripping wet, with a towel wrapped around his waist. “I said you can come back later.” he hissed. The maid’s eyes widened. “Ah-ah-” she stammered, trying to avert her eyes from his physique. Oscar rolled his eyes and slammed the door in her face.

 

Oscar sighed. “Some people.” he muttered angrily. He headed back to the bathroom and shut the door with his foot. He leaned back on the door. “Can’t a man get some peace and  _ quiet _ these days?”

 

As if on cue, the landline started ringing. Oscar went over to the sink and picked up the phone. “Hello?” He paused. He rested his free palm on the counter, looking befuddled. “I thought you didn’t make house calls anymore.” He paused again. “Oh, I see. This is a hotel.”

 

He listened to the angry voice jabbering on the other end. “You better calm down. I can handle more than what they throw at me.” He knit his eyebrows. “Alright, alright! I get it!” he snapped. He slammed the phone back on the receiver and rubbed his temples.

 

“Christ.” he muttered. His blue-gray eyes pierced a hole in the wall. “Things are worse than I thought.”

  
  
  
  


“Hey y’all!” Lilly waved to the shop as she and Jillian stepped inside. “How we doin’ today?”

 

Mr. Zhao turned around behind the counter. “Hey, kids!” he said. Jillian nodded his direction. “Hey, Mr. Zhao.” she said.

 

“Ah, Jillian! You here for restock?” Mr. Zhao shook his head. “I give you real bargain--” He brought a cardboard box from under the counter. There was a blue stamp on it that read ‘ _ I. Ron’s Bullets _ ’. “--buy two boxes of bullets, get enchanted knife at half-price!”

 

Jillian shrugged. “Well, it’s tempting, but I’m kinda strapped right now.” She noticed Mr. Zhao’s dejected look. “But hey, if I ever gotta restock, you’re my main man.” she said, giving him a thumbs-up. Mr. Zhao’s face brightened.

 

Lilly found herself getting distracted by the various antiquities littered throughout the main floor. She was in the middle of examining a miniaturized version of a dragon statue when someone tapped her shoulder. Lilly screeched and fell backwards. “Not too light on your feet, are you?” Jun asked, holding out her hand. Lilly rolled her eyes, annoyed. “I probably WOULD be if you didn’t sneak up on me all the time.” she grumbled and took Jun’s hand.

 

The Asian girl pulled her off the ground with such force Lilly may as well have fallen forward. She stumbled to get her footing and glanced around the shop. She then realized something was amiss. “Uh, where’s Oscar?” she asked.

 

“Eh, he’s not here.” Mr. Zhao answered.

 

“Not here?” Jillian raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t you just hire him?”

 

Mr. Zhao shrugged. “Yeah, but he didn’t show up today.” He shook his head. “Not good first impression.”

 

Lilly glanced at Jun. What kind of employee didn’t show up on their second day of work? Not a very good one. Unless they legitimately had something more important to do, then it would be excusable.

 

The old-looking telephone at the end of the hall began to ring relentlessly. Mr. Zhao picked it up and held it to his ear. “Hello?” he said. He remained silent for a few minutes. “Uh-huh….. Oh, I see….. Well, too bad, then.” He put the phone back on the receiver. “That was Oscar. He say he can’t come in ‘cause he got the measles.” He shook his head again.

 

“Didn’t he say he lived by himself?”

 

Mr. Zhao nodded. “Yeah, but in the Motel, you don’t know who been in there.”

 

He lived in a motel? That was all kinds of strange. Lilly shook her head. ‘ _ Nah, he’s probably just drifting between houses right now. _ ’

 

“Kinda odd, huh?” came Jun’s voice. “Not showing up after getting the job he so desperately needed?”

 

Lilly looked next to her. The fiery look in Jun’s eyes was back. Lilly groaned. “Come on, Jun. Can’t you just give him a break?”

 

Jun blinked. “You know, I’m starting to wonder if all you can do is complain.”

 

Lilly gasped. She crossed her arms and glared at Jun defiantly. “I can do more than complain!”

  
  
  
  


“Jun, we’ve been following this guy for hours!” Lilly whisper-groaned. “Can’t we take a break? Media crews do less stalking than this.”

 

Jun glanced behind her. “Lilly, sometimes in life, you have to do something you’ll regret.” she said. “And during those times, you’ll have to give other people the benefit of the doubt.”

 

Lilly groaned internally. ‘ _ Yeah, like I haven’t been doing that for the past week. _ ’

 

You might be wondering what the girls are doing in the Point Pleasant Pine Trail. Well, actually, they were in the actual woods. They had strayed off the nature path a few minutes ago when Jun saw Oscar suddenly dart off the path. Half an hour before that, Jun had recruited Lilly for another scouting mission to see if they could find anything more about who Oscar really was. They’d spotted him outside a strip mall(which Jun perceived as odd), and followed him out of civilization to the nature walk.

 

Now they were hiding behind some plant life, keeping obsessive watch over Oscar’s every move.

 

Oscar stopped under an dead tree. It was pretty old, with roots twisting over each other and the bark turning a brown-gray. Oscar stared up at the leafless branches for a little while. Then he breathed deeply.

 

“If you’re done stalking me,” he called out. “You can show yourselves.”

 

Jun merely rolled her eyes. She and Lilly complied with his demand and exited the bushes. “That’s better.” The man folded his arms. “Now I’d appreciate an explanation.”

 

“We were just at the strip mall and we saw you leaving the bookstore.” Lilly said. She raised an eyebrow accusingly. “And you don’t look very sick for someone who has the measles. You’re not showing any of the symptoms.”

 

Oscar rolled his eyes. “I didn’t know minors could be hired for detective work.” he said. “Shouldn’t you two be in school?”

 

“That information is classified.” Jun retorted immediately. Lilly glanced at her. ‘ _ Wow, robotic much? _ ’ she muttered internally. She turned back to Oscar. He was still glaring at them, arms folded across his chest.

 

“So, anyway,” she continued. “Lying about having a highly-infectious virus could cause mass hysteria. Therefore, it’d be a criminal offense to lie about having the measles.” Lilly put her arms behind her back and smirked. She was pretty damn proud of herself for having remembered  _ something _ from Biology.

 

But she shouldn’t be stopping now, she was on a roll. “So,  _ Oscar, _ ” She dragged out the last syllable. “If that IS your real name..why would you wanna dodge work after your first day on the job?”

 

“As your mundane friend already said, that information is classified.” the man said. He gave Lilly a particularly harsh glare. “In this tense, ‘classified’ means if I told you, I’d have to kill you.”

 

Lilly returned his glare. “I know what ‘classified’ means!! Just because I’m blonde doesn’t mean I’m dumb!”

 

Oscar sighed irritably. This was taking too long. “Oh, of course. How rude of me.” he apologized, mentally counting the seconds it took for Lilly to detect the sarcasm in his tone. “Of course I shouldn’t have  _ naturally assumed _ that you were an idiot.”

 

When he reached fifteen, Lilly’s face contorted into a look of rage. “Quit talking down on us!” she yelled. “Kids are a lot smarter than you think!!”

 

“You forgot something.” Oscar scolded. He brought up his hands and loosened his tie. “Children are very smart, but they are also very impressionable--a word here which means easy to imitate. If the parents are suddenly robbed of life..” He stared them down, eyes gleaming. “..the children are sure to follow.”

 

The world around the girls suddenly shifted. When it stopped moving, Lilly saw that Jun had propelled them from the path of a series of ice spikes. Lilly nearly choked on her own spit. Jun set Lilly down and looked up. In the several seconds it took to recover, Oscar was in front of the ice spikes, glaring them down.

 

Jun narrowed her eyes. “That’s what I thought,” she hissed. “So.” Jun stepped to the side. “You’re not human.”

 

“Unfortunately so.” Oscar sighed. He ripped off the cross and tossed it on the ground. “Like Jackson said, I’m not entirely human. I was once.” His skin began turning blue. “..then I  _ froze to death. _ ” He reached up and slicked back his hair. At his touch, his bangs froze in place. “Somebody moved me, and I woke up. Then people started to talk. All I want is a life of peace and quiet.”

 

Oscar’s skin was now cloud-blue. His posture was cold and rigid. His eyes looked the same, but they had a lifeless glimmer in them now.

 

Lilly began to tremble. “A spirit?” she asked warily.

 

“No.” Jun disproved her claim. She narrowed her eyes at Oscar.  _ “An undead.” _

  
  
  
  


  
\-- --

  
  
  
  
  


When the suffocating aura from Oscar died down(which only took ten seconds), Lilly took it upon herself to speak up. “Uh,” she said. “Why would a dead guy be working for your dad?”

 

Oscar huffed. “Did you ever think that maybe the undead would like to lie low? That maybe we want to be perceived as something  _ other _ than brain-dead skin eaters?” he said. He narrowed his eyes.

 

Jun stepped to the side. “Granted, you don’t seem like the flesh-eating type, but that doesn’t help your case. Your ice magic gave you away.” she said. She balled up a fist. “You’re working for Jack.”

 

Lilly choked.

 

“I call myself more of a second-in-command, but yes. You’re correct.” Oscar confirmed. His eyes glinted. “And I’m afraid he has much more than just me behind him.”

 

“Damn right, I do!!”

 

Down from the sky came Jack Frost, sparkly cape and all. (“Right on cue,” Lilly muttered.) He grinned smugly and put his hands on his hips. “Looks like the odds are even now, huh?” He glanced over at the taller man. “Thanks fer comin’ out here, Otzi. Really appreciate it.” The taller man rolled his eyes. “Whatever.”

 

“ ‘Otzi’?” Lilly wondered. She pointed at him. “You said your name was Oscar.”

 

‘Oscar’ rolled his eyes again and let out a weary sigh. “Otzi is my given name. It means ‘man of ice’.” he said. “Aptly chosen, considering my currently-undead position.”

 

“Well, that explains it.” Lilly glanced at Jack. “Buuut…” She squinted at him. “That doesn’t explain why  _ you’re  _ here. I mean, I got you t’say you were a jackass, but-”

 

“Oh, come on!!” Jack yelled. He clenched his fists and a tick mark formed on his head. “I want my staff back, you bitch!”

 

“Staff?” Lilly cocked her head. “Oh, you mean that stick I beat you up wi-”

 

“YES!” Jack yelled. A gust of wind hit the girls in the face.

 

Lilly felt a drop of sweat run down her face. “O- _ kay _ .” she said. She turned to Jun. “Jun, I take back all my doubts. You were a hundred-percent right.” She groaned. “But what’re we gonna do now?” She glanced warily back at the duo.

 

“What Hunters are supposed to do.” Jun stepped back into a fighting stance. Jack grinned maniacally. “Ha! You’re outskilled, kid!” he yelled triumphantly. He held back his hands, a blue light crackling in his palms. “And this time, it’s MORE than a fair fight-”

 

A bullet whizzed past his ear. To Jack’s utter contempt, Jillian and Lan were perched on a nearby clef. Jillian lowered her pistol. “What was that about evening the odds?” she smirked.

 

Ötzi sighed. “Way to jinx it, Jackson.” he muttered. Jack glared at him. “Hey, I don’t pay you to mouth off to me!” he spat.

 

Otzi furrowed his eyebrows. “You don’t pay me at  _ all _ -”

 

“HEY BOBBY!!” Otzi glanced over his shoulder. He froze in place when he saw Jun’s sister standing nearby. She was holding a bazooka.  _ A freaking bazooka. _ Lan grinned crazily. “TRY STOPPIN’  _ THIS _ THING!!”

 

Jillian took one look at the bazooka and tensed up. “Lan--LAN! We don’t need to-”

 

Lan pulled the trigger and fell backwards as the rocket launched itself towards the spirits. Otzi barely dodged it in time. The missile hit the tree behind him, demolishing the trunk in a blast of fire and splinters.

 

Jillian sweatdropped. “I told you.” she muttered. She glanced down at Lan. “Well, we’re one man down.”

 

“Sucker!” Jack yelled. Jillian pointed her gun behind her and shot at him. There was a high-pitched scream and Jillian tensed. “Sorry, Lilly!” she called.

 

“That wasn’t me, it was Jack!”

 

Jack sputtered. “No, it wasn’t!” There was a gust of wind and Jack suddenly appeared in front of Jillian. He cracked his knuckles. “Now, where were we?”

 

Jillian cocked her pistol. “I think I was about to blow your goddamn head off.”

 

On the ground, Lilly dug through her pocket. “It’s somewhere in here--AHA!” She pulled out the “welcome box” Jillian gave her the night before. She unscrewed the cap and tossed the bottle at Otzi. “Catch!”

 

The water spilled on Otzi’s vest, doing little more than creating a stain on the fabric. Otzi raised an eyebrow. “Someone call for a water balloon?” he asked condescendingly.

 

He rammed his foot into the ground. A series of ice spikes sprouted from the earth. Lilly jumped out of the way in the nick of time.

 

Otzi sighed. “When Jackson came crying to me about how you’d beaten him, I was hoping for more of a challenge.” He stepped to the side. “Too bad. You’re much more pathetic than I thought you’d be.”

 

Jun’s foot pressed so hard into the ground it cracked the earth under it. Her eyebrows were creased. There was a dangerous aura radiating off of her person, and it was getting bigger by the second.

 

Jun rocketed from her spot and rammed into Otzi’s stomach. She raised her fist and brought it down on his face, but he blocked her with his shoulder. He attempted to flip her over, but was stopped when she drop-kicked him in the back.

 

While they were locked in a flurry of kicks, punches and body blows, Jillian shot at Jack continuously.  _ ‘F@#k, _ ’ she growled internally. ‘ _ For a guy in spandex, he doesn’t have a problem gettin’ around. _ ’

 

Jack stuck his tongue out at her. “You shoot like my grandma--” Jillian nailed him in the shoulder. He screamed and fell out of the air.

 

Jillian smirked. “Looks like your grandma’s not that bad a shot.”

 

Jack glared at her. He thrust out his hand and fired several shots of icicles in her direction. Jillian held up her guns and fired at them. Just as she expected, the bullets collided with the icicles and shattered them. She smirked to herself.

 

A resounding crash came from below the mini-cliff. Jillian glanced over her shoulder. “Sounds like Jun’s havin’ a party down there.” she muttered. She turned back just in time to see Jack rocketing towards her. She jumped out of his path and he whacked his face on the rocks.

  
  


Otzi was beginning to have a difficult time keeping Jun at bay. For every kick he had, she blocked it. Every punch he had, blocked.

 

He grit his teeth. He stopped in his path and propelled his right leg upward. Jun did the same with her left, effectively blocking his attack. The impact held them for a few seconds, but soon sent them both backward.

 

The duelers regained their balance by planting their feet in the dirt as they flew back. Otzi bent forward a little, trying to catch his breath. “Impressive.” he huffed. “I suppose I may have spoke too soon.”

 

“I hate to be the bearer of the obvious,” Jun said. She held up her fists. “But when someone has the power to beat you the first time, then they’ll always have the power to beat you again.”

 

“Childish logic.” Otzi breathed. He copied her movement. “But I guess that’s the trait that makes it empowering.”

 

They both kicked off the dirt at the same time. Otzi instead thrust his fist forward. With her current logic, she would be expecting to block a kick, not a body blow. Jun brought her leg up and kicked him in the face.

 

Otzi cried out and stumbled backward. He held the side of his face and glared at Jun. Before he could react, Jun hit him in the stomach. She dealt blow after blow, and he failed to block her. ‘ _ This is insane. _ ’ Otzi grit his teeth as he tried to dodge her. ‘ _ What kind of whacko is this kid? _ ’

 

He was brought out of his thoughts when he felt the world giving out from under him. He fell on the ground and saw Lilly sticking her foot out in his path. “Uh,” she said nonchalantly, waving her foot. “Whoops.” Otzi gnashed his teeth together.

 

Jun was about to deal a finishing blow when someone above them screamed girlishly. There was another  _ kaboom!! _ , and smoke began to billow from the clef. Jun turned around and went for the cloud. Something was screaming at her to finish off Otzi, but she ignored it. She knew perfectly well what that scream was.

 

She climbed the rock clef with ease and pulled herself onto the ledge. She looked up. Lan had regained consciousness and was sitting rigidly on the ground, holding her bazooka to the west. Jillian was standing barely out of the firing path. And Jack was nowhere to be seen.

 

But that wasn’t her concern.

 

Jun breathed a sigh of relief. Everything was as alright as it could get. Now she could finish her own fight. She turned back around, ready to jump off the ledge and finish Otzi…

 

...but he was nowhere to be found.

 

And neither was Lilly.

  
  
  


Lilly kept her eyes on the gray coat as she sprinted through the forest. Unfortunately, she was starting to miss gym class, because she was barely keeping up with him.

 

She turned a corner and looked straight ahead. Otzi was keeled over near a large birch, trying to catch his breath. “HEY!!!” she yelled.

 

Otzi glanced behind him and his heart stopped for a second. “F@#k!” He made a beeline for the forest.

 

“OH NO, YOU DON’T!!” Lilly pounced on him and they fell in a heap on the forest floor. Thankfully, she ended up on top. She grabbed his cross from her pocket and pressed it to his heart. The coolness radiating from under his clothes gradually began to fade.

 

Otzi’s eyes grew wide. “That’s right, pal.” Lilly growled. “If I hit you right here, you’ll have to die all over again.”

 

The spirit glared at her. “You wouldn’t.”

 

“I would.” She raised the cross. “Alright, spill it -- why have you been calling me? How’d you get my number in the first place? Was hurting Jun another one of your sick tests?”

 

Otzi narrowed his eyes. “I’ve never seen you in my entire existence.” he spat. “Why would I even associate with a clumsy brat like you?”

 

Lilly furrowed her eyebrows. “But..I saw you! You were right across the street from me!”

 

The spirit scoffed. “ _ Yesterday, _ I was in my apartment building trying to figure out how the hell I’d kill you. I didn’t leave until 5:30.”

 

“But..” Lilly trailed off. This wasn’t making sense. She’d seen him with her own eyes. But then again, Ötzi didn’t seem like they type of guy who’d mess with people like  _ he _ did.

 

Lilly felt herself falling and the air was knocked out of her. The force of the blow sent her into shock and rendered her immobile.

  
  
  


_ “..illy! Lilly!” _ Somebody was shaking her.  _ “Wake up, you idiot!” _  they cried.  _ “You’ve gotta stop ‘im before he gets away!!” _

 

“Hu-” Lilly’s eyes snapped open. She blinked twice, then realized what had happened. She was on the ground, covered in leaves, dirt and sticks. “What the-” She sat up instantly and hastily surveyed the clearing. She felt her stomach turn. She was all alone.

 

Otzi was nowhere to be found.

 

Lilly looked at the ground, dejected. She’d had a big chance to get something done right for once, and she blew it. She sighed.

 

Then she felt something metallic in her hands. She looked down. The silver cross from Otzi’s neck was still in her hands. Its chain was wrapped securely around her palm, the cross on the end glistening in the light it could find.

 

For some reason, seeing a random spiritual artifact in her hands made her feel a little better. “You’re gonna be alright, Lilly.” it seemed to say to her.

 

_ “You’re gonna be alright.” _

  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


 

“Ow-ow-ow!” Lilly cringed as Jillian wrapped her arm with bandages. “That hurts, man!”

 

Jillian scoffed. “Relax, crybaby. I’m almost done.” She picked up the scissors on the counter and snipped the bandages to separate them from the roll. “There.” She stuffed the bandages back into the first-aid kit. Which was pretty much just a cardboard box with a bunch of medical supplies in it.

 

Lilly leaned back in her chair and stretched. “Thanks, Jillian.” She glanced at the pistol near her seat. “You didn’t  _ have _ to get me a gun, you know.”

 

“Yes, I did.” the raven said. She stooped down and picked up the first-aid box. “You’re not Jun. You’re not gonna be able to beat these guys without some kind of weapon.”

 

The blonde pouted. She reached toward the gun and examined it. “Keep that on you at all times.” Jillian called from the other room. Lilly mocked her advice with a few “nyeh”s before looking back towards the gun. She aimed it at the cupboard and pretended to pull the trigger. To her sheer terror, the gun went off. Lilly cried out and almost fell off her chair.

 

“Oh, yeah.” Jillian called again. “I got that from Lan, so it doesn’t have safety on it.”

 

Lilly gave the gun a wide-eyed stare and tossed it back on the table.

  
  
  
  


At the Zhao’s home, they had closed up shop for the night. The first floor was dead silent, while the middle level was bustling with kitchen activity. The third floor was silent, too, because nobody dared disturb Jun while she was brooding.

 

The raven leaned out of an open window, absentmindedly tracing the stars while a cool breeze blew through her hair. She never understood how the stars could make the shapes they did, but she didn’t question it. One of the many lessons she’d learned over the years was that you should never poke a thousand-year-old tradition, or it’ll come back to bite you later on.

 

She sighed silently. As the youngest sibling, one would think she received more attention than her sister. For some time, that’s how things were.

 

“Hey.”

 

Jun glanced behind her. Lan was leaning in the doorway. She raised her shoulders. “Can I come in?”

 

Jun shrugged and turned back to the stars. She heard her sister’s footfalls come closer until they stopped next to her. Lan peered out the window. “Man, look at all those stars.” she said. She squinted. “How come there are so many animals up there and so little people? That’s just askin’ for a free-for-all.” She looked at Jun. “Right?”

 

Her sister gave no response. Lan sighed and looked back to the sky. Jun went back to tracing the stars until they formed the outline of the Blue Dragon of the East. Finding out there was a blue dragon after receiving her blue streak and dragon title was quite the coincidence.

 

“I feel pretty bad for not really listening to you.” Lan admitted, breaking the silence. She turned to her sister and stuck out her hand. “Friends?”

 

Jun stared at her hand before she took it in her own. “Always.”

 

Lan smiled and squeezed her hand.

 

Neither sister was very easy to love. One had the emotion of an overcrowded football stadium while the other one was a brick wall. But if you knew them, you would know how much they truly felt, and how close they really held each other.

 

“Jun! Lan!” came their father. “Get your butts down here before I kick ‘em!”

 

“Alright, alright!” Lan yelled back. “Ah,  _ fùqīn huì shì wǒ de sǐ. _ ” she muttered under her breath as she stormed out of the room. Jun watched her go. She glanced toward the window for a few seconds and found the constellation one more time. Smiling internally, she turned around and headed downstairs.

 

Up in the sky, the dragon smiled back.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
**_End of Chapter Three_ **

  
  


**_A Due-North Studios Production_ **

 

**_Director: Chi Kusho_ **

 

**_Co-Producer/Creative Consultant: Fibonaccithegeek_ **

 

**_Associate Co-Producer/Motivational Specialist: CreepySarah16_ **

 

**_Story: Chi Kusho, Fibonaccithegeek_ ** ****_  
_ **_  
_ ** ****_Characters: CreepySarah16 and Chi Kusho_

 

**_Art by Chi Kusho_ **

 

**_Starring:_ **

**_Madeleine Martin as Lilly Anderson and Gossipy Girl 2_ **

**_Alexandra Daddario as Jillian Rothkiss_ **

**_Trina Nishimura as Jun Zhao_ **

**_Jessica Calvello as Lan Zhao_ **

**_Mark Allen Jr. as Jack Frost_ **

**_Introducing Ezra Weisz as Otzi._ **

**_Also Starring Ray Chase as Mysterious Caller, Mike MacFarland as Sensei, Mae Whitman as Addison and Gossipy Girl 1, Lauren Tom as Mrs. Zhao, and Billy West as Mr. Zhao._ **

 

**_This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to characters living or dead is completely coincidental. All rights reserved to Due-North Studios._ **


	4. Chapter IV: Hell's Kitchen

**_The Lost Ones:_ **

**_Chapter IV: Hell’s Kitchen_ **

  
  
  
  
  


It was a fine sunny day in the town of Point Pleasant. Parents could work easily with the knowledge that Take Your Child to Work Day wouldn’t be for another few months.

 

School was always a hallowed hall of learning, be whatever country you lived in. It was also a place you could see friends you didn’t live close to, and it gave you the opportunity to speak to people around your age without going online.

 

Unfortunately, some students felt that they didn’t need to abide by federal law, and they could leave school whenever they wanted. Every so often, they’d abandon what they needed to do and go out and do whatever the hell they felt like.

  
  


Their list  _ probably _ didn’t include  _ ‘Capture a Mongolian Death Worm’ _ .

  
  


The creature in question soon rocketed up from the earth. It was a large black worm, about twelve feet in length. Its skin glistened in the sunlight, and gave off a slimy appearance. It had a single, funnel-esque mouth, full of sharp circulations of teeth and dripping with neon-green saliva. A disgusting smell permeated from the fluid, and you’d be able to tell from looking at it that it was way more than poisonous.

 

The worm turned its body toward the town. Five yards away, there was a whole arsenal of potential meals. It growled lowly. The worm was hungry, irritated at being disturbed. It had enough of hunters coming after it. But it appeared to have finally lost them...

 

Lilly launched herself in the air and landed on the worm’s back. She wrapped her arms around its figurative neck and squeezed hard. “I got it! I got it!” she yelled.

 

“That’s great, Lilly! Hold ‘im there!” Jillian called from the sidelines. She rocketed through the bushes, holding her trusty pistol in one hand and a black pouch in the other. The pouch was dripping a bright-red powder.

 

Jillian knelt down on the grassy terrain and set her gun on the ground. She dug through her jacket pocket and pulled out a bullet capsule. Popping open the capsule, she opened the black pouch and dumped some of the dust inside. It tickled her nose and made her head hurt, but she tried to shake it off. No time for wooziness when there’s a Mongolian Death Worm on the loose.

 

“Almost..got it!” Jillian snapped the capsule shut. She loaded her pistol and cocked it. “Hold ‘im still!!”

 

“I’m trying!” Lilly cried. The large worm screeched angrily and tried to  _ worm _ its way to safety.

 

Jillian held up the gun. A bead of sweat fell from her brow as she tried to find the best shot. It wasn’t easy, of course. Seeing as how there was another person on its back. She aimed carefully, and…

 

**_BANG!!_ **

 

The bullet hit the worm right between the figurative eyes. The worm let out a bone-chilling screech before it fell to the ground and shriveled up.

 

Jillian exhaled loudly. “Finally.” She got up off the ground and stuffed her pistol back in her jacket. “Now he’s dead, and we can head to the library.” Lilly slid off the worm’s back, a terrified yet vacant look in her eyes. Jillian gave her a worried look. “..you okay?”

 

Lilly shook her head. “Yeah, I’m fine.” she answered. She hopped to her feet and pulled down the ends of her turtleneck. “What’s in that pouch, anyway? Looks like one nasty sumbitch.”

 

Jillian held up the pouch and gave it a confused look. The pouch was made of a black satin material, which gave it a smooth touch, and it was tied shut with a small yellow rope. “I hate soundin’ cryptic, but I don’t really know.” she said. “I got it from Mr. Zhao at a pretty cheap price.”

 

Lilly raised a worried eyebrow. “How much was it?”

 

“Free.” Jillian said. Lilly gave her a dead-eyed stare. “He said havin’ a 12-foot worm runnin’ around was gonna be bad fer business. Frankly, I don’t blame ‘im. Life is made up of some really scary shit.” Jillian flicked some squishy stuff off of her jacket.

 

“Yeah,” Lilly sighed. “Cuz there’s nothing’ scarier than shooting a giant worm’s brains out.”

 

Jillian gave her an odd look. “Was that sarcasm I heard?” she asked. Lilly looked to her left. “Maybe.”

 

“Alright, spill.” Jillian folded her arms. “You think there’s something scarier than a twelve-foot, acid-spitting worm, I’m all ears.”

 

Lilly looked to the ground. A soft breeze blew through her hair. She breathed deeply. “Before we met each other, I had to put up with something worse than all these monsters.” she admitted. Jillian raised an eyebrow, but didn’t interrupt. Lilly continued “I dealt with something so terrible and horrible and gruesome that-”

 

“Hey!!”

 

The girls turned around. A tall man in a trenchcoat and brown hat was coming towards them. “You kids better not be doin’ what I think yer doin’.”

 

Jillian narrowed her eyes. “Maybe we are, maybe we aren’t.” she said. She dragged her right foot across the grass, preparing a fighting stance. “What’s it to you?” The tall man stopped in front of them. He had an aging face, brown eyes, and some graying hair under his hat. H

 

“Skipping school, eh?” The tall man glared down at them. “Just as I thought.”

 

“N-no, it’s not like that!” Lilly glanced at the ground for a split second. “We’ve been suspended!”

 

The tall man made a noise. It might’ve been a chuckle, but it sounded enough like a cough that you couldn’t distinguish it. “I’ve heard that line before.” He grabbed the girls’ collars. “Sorry, kids, but you’re comin’ with me.”

 

Jillian’s cap obscured the dark look on her face. “You’ll never take me alive.”

  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


 

The tall man dropped the girls into their chairs. “Well, he took  _ us _ alive.” Lilly said.

 

“Shut up, Lilly.”

 

The chair behind the desk rolled around and revealed a somewhat overweight man with a pug nose. “Thank you, Officer Daniels.” he said. “You can leave now.” The tall man, “Daniels”, muttered to himself and slunk out of the room.

 

The man in front of the girls leaned back in his seat. “Now, ladies,” he said. “Do you know who I am?”

 

Jillian shook her head.

 

The man sighed. He reached forward and turned around the plaque on his desk. The plaque read ‘ _ Principal I. Down _ ’. “ _ Principal _ Down of Point Pleasant Catholic High School.” he said. Jillian squinted at the plaque. “Principal Down?” she read aloud. She raised an eyebrow. “What does the ‘I’ stand for?”

 

“Isa.” the principal stated matter-of-factly. “And you two-” He pointed at the girls. “-have violated one of our most sacred rules--” He paused. “No cutting class.” He leaned forward and squinted at the blonde. “Lillith Anderson?” he asked in disbelief. Lilly nodded. “Hey, Mr. Down. Didja miss me?”

 

Mr. Down’s eyes widened. “Good Lord.” He sat back in his chair and pulled a handkerchief out of his jacket. He wiped his forehead. “Young lady, you had us terrified. Nobody knew where you’d gone or what happened to you--”

 

“Actually, that’s a funny story!” Lilly laughed awkwardly. “Y’see, I’ve-” She caught Jillian’s gaze, which said “don’t you do it”. Lilly paused. “..been living with my grandma.”

 

Principal Down raised an eyebrow. “And why didn’t your grandmother think to call us?”

 

Lilly glanced at the floor. “Uh, she has..Alzheimer's?”

 

The principal shrugged. “Fair enough.” He looked to Jillian. “But I don’t think I’ve seen you around before. What’s your name, missy?”

 

“Uhh…” Jillian’s eyes darted to the right. “..Billie Piper?”

 

Lilly snickered. “Billie Piper.” she said to herself. “What a silly, fake made-up name.” She paused when she noticed Jillian and the principal staring at her. Her blood ran cold when she realized she had just admitted Jillian’s ruse. ‘Whoops.’

 

“Hmm.” He turned back to Jillian. “Real name, please.”

 

Jillian groaned loudly. “Jillian Rothkiss.”

 

Mr. Down raised an eyebrow. “Huh. Rothkiss sounds familiar.” He opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a folded piece of paper. He handed it to Jillian. “This should help you get around okay.” Jillian took the paper from him.

 

Lilly cleared her throat. “Shouldn’t  _ I _ show her around the school?”

 

Mr. Down stared at her. “This is no time for jokes, Miss Anderson.” he deadpanned. He turned back to Jillian. “The school nurse can provide you with uniforms--assuming yours hasn’t burned up.” He pointed to the door. “Now hurry up! Class has started!”

  
  
  


Jillian growled to herself as she pulled the itchy wool shirt over her head. “Now, they may seem a bit uncomfortable at first,” the nurse informed them. “But you’ll get used to it, trust me.”

 

“Yeah, yeah.” Lilly called. “I’ve been here a year. I know how this works.” The blonde stepped out of the bathroom decked in a pale-yellow shirt, light-pink sweater vest, dark-green skirt, and black Mary-Janes. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she was no longer wearing her dark-gray beanie.

 

Jillian emerged wearing the same thing, save for her jacket and baseball cap. She muttered “This bites.”

 

“Oops, almost forgot!~” The nurse reached for Jillian’s cap. “No hats in school.” She was about to take the hat, but Jillian’s hands darted up and grabbed it. The raven’s eyes bore into the nurse. “Touch my hat,” she said slowly. “And I. Will. END. You.”

 

The nurse stepped back. “O-kay.” Jillian held her glare before slowly following Lilly out of the office. When they were outside, she groaned. “Alright, we’re in front of the Health Office.” She removed the school map from her jacket pocket and unfolded it. “Which is where on here?...”

 

Lilly took one look at the map and laughed. “You’re kidding me, right?” she laughed. “We don’t need this!” She grabbed the map and tossed it behind her. It landed on a kid entering the office. “Well, we’re in history right now.” Lilly gestured down the hall. “Better head to homeroom.”

 

The girls continued down the hallway until Lilly stopped at a door identical to the ones they passed before. She stared at it for a second. “Yep, this is the place.” She turned the knob and pushed open the door. The entire class looked up from whatever they were doing to stare at them. The teacher, a young-ish man with a mop of brown hair and round glasses looked behind him. “Lilly Anderson.” he said.

 

Lilly waved. “Hey, Mr. d’Appel.”

 

Mr. d’Appel ran a hand through his hair. “I swear to God, we all thought you were dead. What the hell happened?”

 

“Uh, funny story--” Lilly felt Jillian punch her back. She smiled sheepishly. “I’ll tell ya later.” She headed into the classroom and took a seat in the back row. Jillian followed her. “Hooold up, missy.” Mr. d’Appel glanced at his attendance sheet. “I’m not seeing you on the list.”

 

Jillian stammered. “I-I just got here. You probably don’t have me on there yet.” Mr. d’Appel looked over his sheet again. He knit his eyebrows. “Sorry, kid. Not on the list, you better quit.”

 

The phone near the door rang. Mr. d’Appel took it off the receiver and put it to his ear. “Yeah?” There was some garbled yelling from the end of the line. “You gotta be kiddin’ me.” More garbled yelling. “You’re gonna pay for this.” Mr. d’Appel slammed the phone back onto the receiver and turned to the students. “Okay, we apparently have a transfer student with us today.” The teacher gestured to Jillian. “This is Jillian. Be nice to her, or it’s detention.”

 

The class responded with a half-hearted greeting. Jillian nodded and went to the back of the room. She sat next to Lilly. “Jesus,” she muttered. “This guy is bitchy. You put up with him?”

 

“Well, we have to.” Lilly said. “It’s kinda the law.”

 

Jillian scoffed. “It’s a miracle you survive.”

 

“That’s because I know this stuff!” Lilly whispered. She got a determined look on her face. “You gotta have nerves of steel to get past high school.”

 

“Alright, kids.” Mr. D’Appel slammed a sheet of paper down on his desk. His glasses glinted in the sunlight. “Pop quiz time.”

 

“NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!” Lilly rocketed out of her chair and bolted out of the classroom, screaming at the top of her lungs. Jillian watched, completely confused.

 

She raised an eyebrow. “Nerves of steel, huh?”

  
  


Once Lilly had been caught trying to pry open a window and been dragged back into the classroom, Mr. d’Appel handed out the test papers. “No talking, no phones, and no books.” he said. “You go back on these rules, and ya back yer butt to detention.” He planted himself down in his chair and switched on a small television set. Once he did, the class turned over their papers and started writing.

 

Jillian stared blankly at the paper. These questions didn’t make any sense to her. “ _ Who controlled Germany during the time before and time of World War II? _ ” Well, THAT one made some sense. Everybody knew that. She scribbled the answer on the sheet and looked at the next question. “ _ Name the causes of World War II. _ ”

 

That one made a little less sense.

 

Jillian gulped. She’d left school for the summer and never went back. How was she supposed to know what she was doing when all she had was a kindergarten education? Her eyes darted back and forth. She had to think of something, and fast.

 

“Psst,” she leaned towards Lilly. “What’s the answer to number six?”

 

“Poland.” Lilly whispered back.

 

Five seconds later: “What’s the answer to number eight?”

 

“Chamberlain.”

 

Ten more seconds later: “What’s the answer to number eleven?”

 

“Why are you askin’ me? I don’t know this stuff!”

 

“You told me you did!!”

 

“No talking back there!” Mr. D’Appel scolded. He turned his attention back to the small television set on his desk.

 

“Jeez.” Jillian narrowed her eyes at the television. “What’s on that TV that’s more important than us?”

 

“Modern Teacher.” Lilly whispered. “He watches it whenever he has downtime.”

 

“I said no talking!!” the teacher yelled. Jillian glared at him. ‘ _ Snappy-ass sonova- _ ’

  
  
  


After an extremely slow art class and an equally-slow and confusing math class, the bell called for the students to go to lunch. Lilly pumped her fists. “Yes!” she cheered. “My favorite time of day!”

 

Jillian rolled her eyes. “Why are you always thinking about food?”

 

“It’s not the food!” Lilly groaned. “It’s the food FIGHTS!” Her green eyes glinted mischievously. “They’re absolutely LEGENDARY! A couple weeks ago, Andrew Carnegie nailed one of the seniors with a piece of pie he brought from home. The senior got SO MAD! He threw a pudding cup at ‘im, but he missed and hit the science teacher!”

 

“Lilly!!”

 

The blonde turned around to see a familiar face running down the hall. Her face brightened. “Dennis! Hey!” she called. “How’ve you been?”

 

Dennis came to a stop in front of the girls. He keeled over and tried to catch his breath. “Me?!” he panted. “Where-ha-..have YOU..been?”

 

Lilly shrugged and held up her arms. “Oh, you know, around.” she said. She grinned sheepishly.

 

Jillian leaned towards Lilly and said in a low voice “You know that pipsqueak?”

 

Lilly rolled her eyes. “Pssh. He’s not a pipsqueak.”

 

Across the hall, Dennis opened a locker and his bookbag fell out. It must’ve been a heavy bookbag, because the second it came out, Dennis jumped backwards and screamed at the top of his lungs. Warily, he grabbed his lunchbox from inside the locker and tried to push the bookbag back in. It took him a few minutes, but it finally got in and stayed there.

 

Jillian raised an unamused eyebrow. Lilly deadpanned. “Just come on.” she said. She grabbed Jillian’s arm and pulled her in the direction Dennis was heading.

  
  


Lilly kicked the double-doors open. “Welcome to the lunchroom!”

 

The cafeteria was larger than many of the classrooms that they’d been in, with long tables lined up behind one another. There were red stools for seats, several vending machines near the trash cans, and a long line of students was waiting at the buffet table to be served their food.

 

Lilly practically dragged Jillian over to the lunch line. The raven looked around awkwardly. “Uhh..what are we supposed to do now?”

 

“Simple.” Lilly said. She grabbed a tray off of the stack. “You just take one o’these and pick off whatever looks good.”

 

A slouched middle-aged woman was standing on the other side of the buffet. She had messy dark hair tied in a bun and dead-looking green eyes. A white name-tag was clipped onto her pristine cafeteria-worker uniform and read “Hi! My name is Dora!”. “Take only enough t’fill your bowl to the middle.” she droned. “And don’t use your hands. I might chop ‘em off and use ‘em in the goulash.”

 

The kids in front of her grimaced and scurried off to a table. Lilly stepped in the place they used to be and beamed. “Good afternoon, Lunchlady Dora!” she chirped. She rubbed her hands together. “What would you recommend for a comeback luncheon?”

 

“Look, kid. I don’t fall for that-” The woman glanced up at her and stopped short. “Lilly.” she said. “You’re back.” Lilly beamed. “Yep! And, uh,” She slung an arm around Jillian’s shoulder and pulled her into view. “This young lady’s new in town, so we’re wonderin’ if you could recommend anything special?”

 

Dora’s eyebrow twitched. “Oh, yeah.” she said. She held up the ladle in her hand. “I’ve got somethin’ in mind for you kids…”

  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


 

Lilly stared down at the lunch tray, baffled. “...what...is this?...” she asked. Dora glowered down at the girls.    
  
“Lunch.” she said bluntly. “Enjoy.” She turned on her heel and headed back behind the counter. The girls continued to stare at the blob of chunky, green mystery before them. Jillian’s eyes slowly darted around the lunchroom. “Is this...really what you eat here?”   
  
“Well, yeah,” Lilly explained. “Dora’s cooking has always been questionable.” She jolted as the food on her tray made a sickening groaning sound. She gulped. “But it’s never been THIS bad…”   
  
The glop on their tray lurched forward. “Okay-" Jillian pulled her hand out from under the table. "-that's it, I'm shootin' this thing.”

  
Lilly's eyes widened in horror. "How did you get that in here?! There's a metal detector at the front door!!"   
  
“You don't wanna know.”

  
Lilly grimaced. Jillian shot her an incredulous look. “I just pulled the plug on it!! Jeez!!”

 

“Hey, guys.” Lilly looked up to see Dennis standing over them. He had a red-and-yellow lunchbox in his right hand. “What’s on the menu?” he asked.

 

“Green slop.” Jillian responded sarcastically. She poked the slop with her spork. “With a side of applesauce and some possibly-expired milk.”

 

Lilly glared at her, but Dennis laughed. “Yeah, I figured. That all they’ve been serving for the past two weeks.” he said. He sat down across from them and put his lunchbox on the table. “But the lunch lady's food has always been pretty questionable.”

 

“Told ya.” Lilly whispered.

 

Then something odd happened. Dennis got this paranoid look on his face. He looked to the left. He looked to the right. He looked to the left again. Then, he leaned closer to the girls and whispered “Do you notice anything strange?”

 

Jillian raised an eyebrow and looked at him like he had three heads. “What the hell are you talkin’ about?”

 

Dennis shushed her. “Just trust me on this!!” he whispered urgently. “What do you see that doesn’t look normal?”

 

Lilly copied Jillian’s face. But she looked around the cafeteria, as instructed. There were kids at their tables, eating lunch, having pleasant conversations, occasionally erupting into fits of laughter. But nobody was standing up. There wasn’t anyone leaning against the walls, sitting by the tiny staircase, or anywhere else but a lunch table. Another big oddity was the absence of authority. Except for the lunch ladies, there were no other faculty members in the area. The kids should’ve been going nuts.

 

“Not really.” Dennis said. “The closest we ever got to a food fight was when someone spilled another guy’s slop. The kid went into convulsions during History and had to get sent home.”

 

“Sounds like a bad graphic novel.” Jillian muttered. “Don't really see how an allergic reaction is related to mind control.”

 

Lilly slammed her palms on the table. “We’ll check it out!” she proclaimed.

 

Dennis grinned. “Really?! That’s-” He paused. “Wait,  _ how _ can you check it out?”

 

“Uhh..” Lilly’s eyes darted to the left. “We just will, that’s how.” Dennis looked around the lunchroom again. “What’s the matter, man? You seem more freaked-out than usual-”

 

“Hey! Hall Monitor!!” A gruff-looking woman with a scratchy voice and a beehive hairstyle waddled over to the table and glared at Dennis. “You’re supposed to be on duty!” she scolded, waggling her finger at him like he was a naughty child. “Ten minutes for lunch, and that’s it! Now scoot!!”

 

Dennis gulped. He nodded furiously. “Y-yes Ms. Glaucoma.” he stammered and hastily began to gather up his stuff. “That’s Miss Glumatta!!” the teacher scolded again. “My eyes are doing just fine, y’know!” Dennis nodded again and slung his bag over his shoulder. “Yes, ma’am.” he said again. He ran out of the lunchroom and nearly tripped over his shoelace doing so.

 

Lilly blinked vacantly. “...well, that happened.”

 

Jillian leaned toward Lilly and whispered “What the hell are you doing?”

 

“I’m doing what I do best.” Lilly whispered back. “I’m being nosy. Try it sometime.”

 

“I don’t give a shit about you being nosy.” Jillian said harshly. “I do, however, happen to give a shit about getting put behind bars. What’s the principal gonna say when he finds out we’re snooping around?”

 

“The principal’s not gonna find out.” Lilly said. “Sneaking around is another thing I’m good at.”

 

Lilly glanced at the clock mounted on the far wall. “What time is it?” She squinted at the clock to try and make it out. “Twelve...no, one...no, twelve-twenty….nine? Yeah, twelve twenty-nine.” She pushed the circular chair out and stood up. “Let’s get outta here.”

 

Jillian looked around. “Shouldn’t we throw the trays away?”

 

“Nah, someone’ll cover for us.” Lilly gestured to the trays. “I’m not touching that slop, anyway.”

 

“Alrightie.” Jillian stood up and began to follow Lilly out of the lunchroom. Then she stopped in her tracks. “Wait, where  _ are _ we going next?”

  
  
  


“Gym.” Lilly groaned. “The sweat-soaked cesspool that separates the men from the boys.”

 

Out on the slick gym floor, a large beefy-looking guy was trying to hammer another beefy-looking guy in a mat. Similar scenes were happening around the room, save for the mostly-vacant bleachers. Everyone was dressed in a white T-shirt and red shorts, which, for some people, didn’t leave much to the imagination.

 

The girls were seated on the top left of the bleachers, watching the carnage in front of them. Jillian watched one of the seniors piledrive another senior into the mats. She scoffed. “Pssh. This is nuthin’. I could take these guys in one shot.”

 

Lilly looked at her like she had three heads. “You’re kidding, right?” she said. “Those guys eat scrap iron for breakfast. Besides, the coach probably won’t let anybody else out on the field.” The head coach was standing by the bleachers. He was a tall man with girlish arms and a sharp jawline. His jet-black hair was in a rather comedic style; it looked like someone attached him to some jumper cables.

 

“Ah, yeah?” Jillian stood up and gestured to the coach. “Watch me.” She headed down the bleachers. When she got to the ground, she tapped the coach’s shoulder. “Hey, coach.” she said loudly. “Put me in.” The coach raised an eyebrow. “ _ Really? _ ” he asked incredulously. “No offense, sweetie, but..” He chuckled awkwardly. “You’re..kind of a shrimp.”

 

Lilly smacked her forehead. She probably should’ve mentioned, but the coach had some pretty conservative views about sports. The only reason he really let Jun on the team was because they didn’t want a repeat of the Science Flare(which was an incident in which a certain big sister blew up the gymnasium).

 

Jillian narrowed her eyes. “I’m serious.” she snapped. “Put me in. I can take these guys.” The coach looked uneasy, but he nodded anyway. “..alright. Just..be careful. Don’t break anything.”

 

Jillian deadpanned. “Don’t break myself or don’t break school property?” she asked sarcastically.

 

A kid laughed from the bleachers. “Zing!”

 

The coach glared up at the kid. “Knock it off, Lyndon!” he yelled. “Hayley!” The coach pointed to a slim-looking brunette who sat towards the middle of the stands. “You’re up against Jillian! Hop to!” Hayley got up from the bleachers and headed to the mat. She stood across from Jillian. Her hair was in a ponytail and she appeared to be wearing much more makeup than was legal.

 

Jillian put up her fists. “Alright, I can take this bitch.” she muttered to herself. “Alright!” she barked. “You ready for thi-”

 

Hayley put up her hand. “Hang on, just gimmie a sec.” She pulled her phone out of her pocket and began texting someone, giggling periodically. Lilly sweatdropped. This was why Hayley ruled the boxing ring. Nobody gets in the way of her and her phone.

 

Jillian deadpanned. Her eyebrows knit into her game face and she pulled back her fist. “ONE!!” Faster than Hayley could react, Jillian nailed her across the face and sent her flying off the mat. Her fist collided with her jaw with a sickening crack, and she landed on the hardwood floor.

 

The watching students were dead silent. Then they exploded into a ruckus of cheers. The coach held Jillian’s arm in the air. “Winner!!” he roared. He pointed at Hayley. “Now could somebody get that kid to the nurse’s office?” Two students with a stretcher ran over to Hayley and lifted her on the stretcher.

 

“Alright!” the coach declared. “Who’s next?!” The students all raised their hands, eager to get a chance to take down the girl who beat Hayley Manning in less than a minute.

 

Lilly sweatdropped. “She’s gonna kill ‘em.”

  
  
  


Lilly’s morbid prediction was correct. In the rest of the gym period, Jillian sent both the varsity and the junior varsity boxing teams to the floor. Two to three years of high-school training couldn’t compete with a decade of fighting supernatural beings.

 

Jillian cracked her knuckles as she came into the locker room. She stretched her arms above her head until there was a satisfying  _ pop _ . “Nuthin’ beats a good old-fashioned beat-down.” she sighed. Lily rolled her eyes. “Yeah, whatever.” she said.

 

“What’s the big deal?” Jillian asked. She stretched her leg outward. “You’re startin’ t’sound a lot like me.”

 

Lilly sighed. “Nuthin’. I jus-” Lilly looked at the floor and screeched. A pile of bright-green slop was crawling around on the tile. To her horror, it was the same slop they’d been served for lunch. Jillian pulled out one of her guns and fired. The bullet went right through the slop. Even worse, it made it mad. The slop began lurching in their direction.

 

The girls ran up on one of the benches and looked behind them. “What the hell?” Jillian said. “I was alway told it was impossible for food to bite you back! How’re we gonna get rid of this thing?”

 

Lilly looked around the room. It was pretty obvious that shooting it wouldn’t work. Which meant if shooting didn’t work, smashing it wasn’t gonna be much help, either. If they added water on it, it’d probably make it bigger. And they  _ definitely _ didn’t want a ten-foot slime monster running around.

 

Her eyes fell on Jillian’s left pocket. The black pouch of dust was still nestled inside. She reached inside the pocket and pulled out the pouch. “What the-” Jillian jerked away from her. Lilly ignored her spazzing-out and opened the pouch.

 

She dumped some of the dust on the slop. The green mass froze for a few seconds. Then it jerked, let out a mangled squeal, and dissolved on the floor.

 

“Huh.” Jillian panted. “Whaddya know?” She hesitantly poked the slop with her gun. It didn’t try to eat the gun, so she deemed it safe to step down. “So, whaddya say?” Jillian cocked her head.

 

Lilly nodded. “I had my doubts about the cafeteria food, but this really takes the cake.” she said. She got down from the bench and looked to Jillian. Jillian was staring at her strangely. Lilly blinked. “What?”

 

“Did you do that on purpose?”

 

“What? The dust or the pun?”

 

“Both.”

 

“Oh.” Lilly looked to her left. “Well, the pun was completely unintentional.” she began. “Buuut, the dust? I dunno why I took it. Followin’ a hunch, I guess. Or maybe the little voice inside my head is back.”

 

Jillian looked at her funny. Lilly deadpanned. “I use humor to break tension. Lay off me.”

 

“Alright, alright. Don’t get yer panties in a knot.” Jillian took the bag of dust from her and shoved it back in her pocket. Then she knelt down and prodded the slop again. When nothing happened, she stood up. She looked to the door and narrowed her eyes. “The cavalry’s a-comin’.” she said ominously. She looked to Lilly. “Time to change back to our secret identities.”

 

Lilly scoffed. “Now who’s making puns?” she asked sarcastically. She went to her locker and grabbed her uniform. Jillian copied her and tossed her hat on the bench. She took the ends of her shirt and started to pull it up.

 

“Oi, hey! We can’t show this!” Lilly turned around. Her face was beet-red. She was never comfortable with changing where people could see her.

 

“Yeesh, relax.” Jillian scolded over her shoulder. “It’s nothing ya haven't seen before.”

 

Once they had changed, the girls quickly exited the locker room and stormed down the hall. Well, Jillian did. She had this vibe to her that always made it seem like she was mad. Well, back to the story.

 

Upon reaching the front office, they went right past the secretary and Jillian kicked the door open. Mr. Down was at his desk, meticulously attempting to put the finishing touches on a ship in a bottle. He jolted up and cried out when the girls entered his office. “What is blazes?!” he yelled. “How’d you get past the hall monitors?!”

 

“Like we meant business.” Jillian slammed her palms on the desk, creating a loud  _ smack! _ . “We want answers, Mr. Down. What’s with the slop?”

 

Mr. Down raised an eyebrow. “What are you talking abou-”

 

Jillian grabbed his tie and yanked him forward. “Oh, so we’re doin’ this the hard way?” she asked condescendingly. “Fine. I’ll play.”

 

Lilly had seen enough crime-fiction movies to know what was happening, but she barely suppressed a cry when she saw Jillian reaching for her gun. She began to clap feverishly. “Bravo! Bravo!” she cried. Jillian looked back in confusion. The principal followed her suit. “What in-”

 

Lilly held her arms out. “Mr. Down, you’ve just had a front-row seat to the next acting sensation!!”

 

Jillian stared blankly at her. “What?”

 

“Y’see, Mr. Down, Jillian’s been studying the role of a rough-and-tumble cocktail waitress who happens to be a police officer! She’s not gonna hurt anybody.” Lilly grinned. “Unless they skip on their tab!”

 

It was a feeble attempt at a joke, but she hoped it would cover it up. The last thing either of them needed was to get arrested. And to her relief, Mr. Down started to laugh. “Oh, I get it! Because, she’s a waitress..” He cleared his throat and wiped his forehead. “Terrific work, girls. Terrific work!”

 

Jillian nodded hesitantly and slowly stepped away from the desk. Lilly glared at her for a split second before turning back to Principal Down. “But while we’re in here, I gotta know-” She paused. “What’s with the menu change in the cafeteria? The lunch ladies were never THIS bad at their job!” Lilly’s eyes widened. She shrunk back and looked around the room. “Please don’t tell them I said that.”

 

“What are you..” Mr. Down’s brain clicked. “Oh! You must be wondering about the new lunches!” He cleared his throat. “Well, the goal of the most recent PTA meeting was to save money without doing any damage to the educational factors.” Mr. Down said. “The head cafeteria worker suggested making cheaper meals. So instead of cutting costs to the music and arts department, we are now serving a cost-effective, mildly-nourishing porridge.”

 

Lilly’s eyes widened in disgust. “You’re serving us  _ gruel? _ ”

 

“Not exactly.” Mr. Down opened a drawer and pulled out a sheet of paper. “We’re serving Hershill-brand Imitation Gruel.” he explained, pointing at the paper. “Nine out of ten children can’t tell the difference.” The paper had an opened can of gruel on it with  _ Hershill’s Imitation Gruel!! _ At the bottom was a little boy giving the can a thumbs-up with a hungry look on his face.

 

Mr. Down put the paper face-down on his desk and raised an eyebrow. “What’re you girls doing here, anyway?” he asked suspiciously. “Are you trying to pull something?”

 

Lilly waved her hands wildly. “No, no! We were just curious!” She grabbed Jillian’s arm. “Well, back to class! See ya, Mr. Down!” She practically dragged Jillian out of the office and slammed the door behind them. Once outside, she fell against the door and sighed in relief.

 

Then she snapped her head up and yelled “What the HELL were you THINKING?!”

 

“What was I thinking? What were YOU thinking?!” Jillian retorted. “ _ I _ was doin’ my job! He wasn’t talkin’, so I figured once he met Suicide and Sudden Death, he’d-”

 

“Are you cuh-RAZY?!” Lilly screeched. “You DON’T SHOOT THE PRINCIPAL!! That’s INSANE!!” She paused. “And why would you name your guns? That’s just further insanity.”

 

Jillian shrugged. “Eh, my grandpa did it.”

 

“Well, it’s still crazy.”

 

“Y’know what? Screw this.” Jillian stomped over to the wall. Lilly’s eyes bulged. “What’re you doing?!”

 

“Making a distraction.” Jillian yanked down on the fire alarm. A loud beeping noise began to blare over the sound systems. Jillian put her hands over her ears and yelled “Come on!!”

 

She and Lilly ran down the hall and ducked into the cafeteria. They kneeled underneath the door’s slit-like windows as the thunderous sound of billions of feet stamped outside. Only after the ruckus had silenced completely did they leave their spot and begin scanning the lunchroom.

 

“So, what’re we lookin’ for?” Lilly asked.

 

“Anything that doesn’t belong here.” Jillian said, feeling around one of the vending machines. “If my experience benefits me, there should be something right..around..” She took a step back and kicked the vending machine.

 

A few seconds passed and a can of soda fell off the shelf. Jillian deadpanned. “Well, no secret entrance.” she said. She turned away from the vending machine and headed toward the trash cans.

 

Lilly got on her knees and crawled underneath one of the tables. She started scanning the floor. Scuffed tiles, stained tabletop, and an appalling absence of wrappers -- but nothing suspicious. She knit her eyebrows.

 

“I’m startin’ to think this was a bust.” Jillian confessed. She put a hand on her hip and looked around the lunchroom. “Your friend was probably paranoid.”

 

Lilly sighed sadly. It didn’t make sense. Whenever Dennis  _ was _ paranoid, there was usually a valid reason later on. He was right about the elections, he was right about the parade float. Hell, he was even right about the outcome of the big varsity wrestling match. The school’s rep got so rough, they had to get five audience members to take him down.

 

_ Have you really looked  _ **_everywhere?_ **

 

Lilly looked up. She looked past Jillian and looked past the tables. Her eyes locked on the kitchen doors behind the buffet. They hadn’t looked everywhere yet.

 

“We have looked far..” Lilly said slowly. She got to her feet. “But have we looked wide as well?”

 

“Uh..” Jillian looked to the side. “No.”

 

“Are you sure? Cuz you’re supposed t’search far  _ and _ wide. Wide’s, like, half of it.”

 

She and Jillian proceeded towards the buffet at the back of the room. Jillian climbed over the table, but Lilly found it much easier to just use the door that was located at the end of the table. They began to search the back, overturning pots, pans, cupboards and drawers. And yet, they found nothing.

 

“Okay.” Jillian huffed. “This was definitely a bust.”

 

Lilly once again felt dejected. Maybe Dennis was blowing things out of proportion. She turned around, heading for the door when…

 

She stopped in her tracks. “What is that SMELL?”

 

Jillian looked at her for a second before putting her hands over her nose. “Oh, God. You’re right. It smells like a cat that died in a desert.” She took off her cap and put put over her face like a gas mask.

 

Lilly took a deep breath and refused to exhale. “I’m not breathing until we find out what that is, okay? I-I just can’t.”

 

Jillian looked behind her. The smell seemed to be permeating from behind the double doors that led to the kitchen. She looked at Lilly and nodded. Lilly blinked. “I..I don’t know what that means.” she said. Jillian groaned. “Just follow me.” She grabbed Lilly’s arm, keeping one hand holding the rim of her cap, and dragged her over to the doors.

 

She let go of Lilly’s arm and put her free hand on one of the doors. She looked to Lilly. “Ready?” she asked this time. Lilly nodded and gave her a thumbs-up. Her face was starting to turn red, and with her cheeks puffed up to prevent from exhaling, she looked like a blonde-haired tomato.

 

The girls took a breath. They pushed open the doors, and their jaws dropped.

 

Behind the kitchen doors was a huge pot of the green slop they’d been given at lunch. But this time, it was bubbling and churning, as if it were alive.

 

“I think I’m gonna barf.” Lilly groaned.

 

“Hold it in.” Jillian scolded.

  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


 

Jillian stared at the pots of slop. She looked utterly horrified. “What the hell?” she gaped. “What are they  _ feeding _ these kids?”

 

Lilly gulped quickly. She squinted at the green liquid. The smell was killing her, but it was familiar in some odd, disgusting way. Where had she seen this slop?

 

“What’re you kids doin’ in here?”

 

Lilly cried out in terror and clung to Jillian. Out of the darkness, Dora sauntered into view in an almost-cliche fashion. “The lunch lady.” Jillian rolled her eyes. “I figured.”

 

“What?!” Lilly yelled. “Five minutes ago, you said this was a bust!!”

 

“People change their minds!” Jillian yelled back.

 

“Oy.” Dora rubbed her forehead. “Kids are so freakin’ loud. Ya give me so much headaches, you have no idea.”

 

There was a loud growl from above them. Lilly paled. A sinking feeling told her that wasn’t a human stomach. She grabbed Jillian’s arm and yanked her out of her spot. Just in time, too. A giant black worm, with a gaping mouth full of circulating teeth, dropped down from the ceiling and landed where they’d been standing.

 

The girls both paled.

 

A Mongolian Death Worm.

  
Jillian yelled “What the hell?! I just shot one o’those things!!”

 

Lunchlady Dora looked at her and raised an eyebrow. “Oh, funny. Ya know what this is?”

 

Jillian grit her teeth. “The hell I do! It’s a freakin’ Death Worm! What’s that even doing here?!”

 

The worm hissed at them, neon-green saliva dripping out of its one orifice. The saliva dripped onto the floor, and a hissing sound reached their ears. The floor was dissolving. “Y’see,” Dora shrugged as three other worms came down from the ceiling. “When ya dumb the green stuff down, it’s kinda like a mood medication. It lowers their energy levels so they’re less likely t’act like idiots. Less pandemonium fer me, better grades fer them.”

 

Jillian grit her teeth. She pointed her pistol at the green liquid. “Lady, this is ACID!! The kids aren’t being energy-drained, it’s meltin’ their minds! How stupid ARE you, you crazy bitch?!”

 

Dora shot a deathly glared Jillian’s way. “Watch your mouth, kid. I’ve have half a mind t’strangle you and see where things go.”

 

“Oh, yeah?” Jillian held up her pistol. “Well, I’m the type of gal who shoots crap like this...” She glanced at the worm. “..acid-maker fer fun.” She narrowed her eyes. The two then became locked in a glaring contest until there was a loud clatter above them. “Shit!!” somebody yelled.

 

The head lunch lady looked up. Lilly was standing on the catwalk above them, which was next to the giant vats. She’d tripped on a spare metal rod and was now clutching her knee in pain.

 

One of the worms slithered up the poles and blocked Lilly’s path. Lilly paled. “Crap!!” She fumbled for the gun Jillian had slipped her in secret and pointed it at the worm. “DOn’t make me use this!!” she cried, trying to sound confident. The worm ignored her and screeched angrily. It started coming at her.

 

Lilly screamed and pulled the trigger. The bullet hit the worm square in the figurative eyes and it roared in pain. It began to wobble, and slowly collapsed on the metal catwalk.

 

_ “Sal..” _ it whispered throatily.  _ “S a l…. S a la vu s….. An i m a r u m…”  _ The creature fell limp and slowly crumbled into a pile of dust.

 

Back on the ground, Jillian was doing her best to fend off the remaining worms. Well, the best she could with only one pistol. These things were coming at her from every angle, and since she was down a weapon, it was taking twice as long as she was used to. A worm lunged at her. She barely dodged it. What the hell was she gonna do to get out of this?

 

Then it hit her. She fished through her jacket pockets and pulled out the black satin pouch. “Lilly!!” she yelled at the blonde. “Catch!!” She chucked the pouch above her, praying Lilly was a better catch than she looked.

 

Lilly saw the pouch heading towards her and cried out. “Oh, crap!” She reached out for the pouch, but the second it hit her hand it bounced off. “Dangit!” She grabbed it with her other hand. Thankfully, it stayed in place.

 

As soon as Lilly caught the pouch, Jillian kicked a worm in the face and made a break for the shadows of the catwalk. If Lilly picked up what was happening, even she’d be able to figure this out. ‘ _ Yeah. _ ’ she scoffed mentally. ‘ _ Let’s hope, right? _ ’

 

Lilly looked down below. She saw Jillian running underneath the catwalk, but what was happening? Why’d she throw her the pouch if--

 

… oh.

 

Lilly leaned over the railing. She ran over to the spot above them, hastily trying to undo the rope the held it shut.. She’d only get one shot at this. When Dora and the worms were all in the same place, Lilly leaned over the railing. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath….

 

...and dropped the pouch over the side.

 

The pouch nailed Dora on the head. A second later, it erupted in an explosion of sparkling red dust. Dora fell to the floor, and the worms writhed in agony, shriveling up before crumbling into dust.

 

Lilly opened her eyes and looked below her. Jillian was sitting on the floor, beat up and worn out. She raised her arm in a tired thumbs-up.

 

“One nasty sumbitch!” she repeated. Lilly grinned like an idiot and started to laugh.

  
  
  
  
  


The girls managed to get back to homeroom without anybody noticing them. Which was no easy task, considering they were in a huge building full of tattletales. In about five minutes, they were seated back in Mr. d’Appel’s class, waiting for more instructions. Jillian was looking around the room rather warily. Many of the students, who had been dull and lifeless the rest of the day, were now sitting upright, with tense muscles and a strange aura coming off them. The teacher must’ve noticed all this, because he was sitting behind his desk, keeping his distance from the exit.

 

She leaned over to Lilly. “Lilly.” she whispered urgently. “What’s up with these kids?”

 

“Wait for it..”

 

“What?”

 

“I said wait for it.”

 

In three minutes, the bell rang louder than ever and the students rocketed out of their seats. They nearly trampled one another trying to get out of the classroom. Jillian’s eyes widened.

 

“..wow.”

 

Lilly nodded. “I know, right?”

 

“Hey!”

 

The girls turned around. A tall, sort of pudgy teenager was pointing at them. He had a somewhat angry look on his face. “I know you!” he yelled at Jillian in a nasally voice.

 

Jillian raised an eyebrow. “Hah?” she droned. “Come one more time?”

 

The boy pushed up his glasses. “I’m the head hall monitor!”

 

Jillian's eyes widened. A few minutes passed. Then she clipped the boy in the nose and sent him to the floor.

 

Lilly’s eyes bulged “You killed him!!” she cried.

 

“Nah, he’ll just be out for a while.”

 

Lilly looked at her strangely. Then something clicked in her head. “Oh! I’ve gotta go get our clothes from the nurse’s office!” She turned on her heel and ran off down the hall. “I’ll meet you by the exit! Just gimme a few minutes!” She had gone down that hall so fast, Jillian was quite literally left in a pile of dust. Jillian stared after her and blinked vacantly.

 

It didn’t take very long for Lilly to reach the health office(well, at the speed she was going at.). She threw the door open and yelled “NURSE MAYHEM!!” at the top of her lungs.

 

The dark-haired nurse groaned and turned around. There was a dull look in her eyes and she had a cigarette in her mouth. “I’m not Nurse Mayhem, hun.” she droned. “I’m Nurse Matricia.”

 

“Oh, sorry. Uh,” Lilly unzipped the backpack and held it in front of her. “Can I have my clothes back?”

 

“If you can find ‘em, they’re yours.” Nurse Matricia got off her stool and produced a large bin that read “ _ LOST AND FOUND _ ” from underneath the desk. Lilly smiled at her and began to root through the bin of clothes. She grabbed her turtleneck, her jeans, Jillian’s shirt and skirt… “Uh, where’s…?”

 

“Oh, right.” The nurse went under the desk and brought out another bin that read “ _ LOST AND FOUND -- HAT EDITION _ ”. This was an equally-overflowing bin of hats. There was even a mini sombrero in the pile. But sitting on top of the pile was Lilly’s trusty gray beanie. Lilly beamed and grabbed it from the bin. Setting the backpack down for a minute, she pulled the beanie over her head. She patted the hat. “It’s good to be back.”

 

“Ya lost anything else?” Nurse Matricia asked. “We also got-” She counted her fingers as she named them off. “-Lost and Found Shoe Repair, Lost and Found Jewelrypalooza, Lost and Found: Unmentionables--”

 

Lilly waved her hands. “Nononono!” she said. Then she stopped short. “Uh,” She gripped the ends of the desk and leaned forward. “Could I see Jewelrypalooza for a second?” she asked meekly.

 

“Sure.” The nurse brought out another bin filled with acessories. Lilly peered into the bin, hoping to find something of value. “Mmm, I don’t see--” Her eyes fell upon a large round locket. She grabbed the chain and pulled it out. “There she is!” she cheered and held up the locket triumphantly.

 

The nurse raised an eyebrow. “That’s yours?” she asked. “It looks pretty old.”

 

“Why, yes. It is. Thank you.” Lilly smiled. She hung the locket around her neck and picked up the backpack. “Welp, I’m off!” She waved at the nurse on her way out. “Bye, Nurse Matricia!” The nurse gave a half-hearted “eh” in reply.

 

Lilly shut the door behind her and began to skip down the hall. It had, in fact, been a while since she’d walked these halls, and oddly enough, she missed it. She missed the half-hearted lectures the teachers gave, and the craziness of the lunchroom, and the inevitable heart attack that came with missing assignments. Sometimes, she really liked school, despite all the “problems” that it brought.

 

“Lilly!!” called a pubescent male voice. Lilly turned around. Once again, Dennis was running up behind her and Jillian. She smiled at him “Oh, hey again, Dennis! How’s it-”

 

“Lilly,” He keeled over and tried to catch his breath. One could only go so fast when they were carrying a backpack of bricks. “Where the heck were you? We were all scared to death.”

 

Lilly laughed awkwardly. “I, uh, must’ve gotten lost! You remember why I’m not allowed t’play tour guide!”

 

“You know that’s not what I meant.” Dennis interrupted. “I called your grandma five times. She said you weren’t home, and the fifth time, she called me a braggart and hung up.” Dennis 

 

Lilly scratched the back of her head. “Look, I know it seems odd, but-”

 

“Lilly..” Dennis glanced at the floor, then back at her. “Are you ever gonna tell us where you went?”

 

Lilly looked to the floor, a remorseful look in her eyes. Oh, how she wished she could tell him. How she wished she could open her mouth and blurt out every single thing that happened these past two weeks. But if she did, she’d risk exposing the private lives of a family and a dirty secret about the town’s closest thing to an urban legend.

 

She looked up at him. Dennis was waiting expectantly for an answer. Lilly breathed. “It’s a really long story, Dennis.” she said. “It’s long, confusing, and it’s got some details so outrageous you’d fall off your nonexistent chair. You probably wouldn’t believe me. The adults definitely wouldn’t.” She put a hand on his shoulder. “Someday, I’ll tell you all about it.”

 

Dennis knit his eyebrows. “What kind of answer is-”   
  
“Welp, gotta go!” Lilly grinned. “Grandma’s oven ain’t gonna clean itself!” She slung Jillian’s backpack over her shoulder and skipped down the hall, leaving a dazed and confused Dennis in her dust.

 

Dennis watched her go. He barely had time to. One second she was there, the next she was gone. That was classic Lilly. But something about her story didn’t add up. Dennis looked at the floor.

 

He muttered to himself “..doesn’t your grandma live in Ontario?”

 

Lilly didn’t hear him, for she was too far away. Her skipping trek was put on hold when she got to the double doors out front. Jillian was leaning against the wall, her hands nestled deep in her coat pockets. She looked up. “Ready to go?”

 

Lilly nodded. “Yep. Let’s roll.”

 

The girls kicked open the double-doors and headed outside. A brilliant scene greeted them -- students throwing off the shackles of the hallways and spreading the wings of juvenile freedom. “It’s a grand sight, isn’t it?” Lilly asked.

 

Jillian shrugged. “Eh, whatever.”

 

They headed off into the woods, ready to find the nature trail and return to the secrecy of the bunker. “By the way,” Jillian said. “I told that principal guy to not expect me back.” She put her hands behind her head. “This school thing isn’t really fer me.”

 

Lilly rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. Whatever.”

 

Jillian looked at her and raised an eyebrow. “Are  _ you _ goin’ back?”

 

Lilly shrugged. “Eh, I’ll give ‘em an excuse note or somethin’. Say Grandma still needs my help.”

 

Jillian nodded. She turned back to the path and blinked a few times. She didn’t know why, but she felt like she was forgetting something. Something really, really important...

  
  
  


 

\-- --   
  
  
  


 

Ten minutes away from the school, Dennis opened the doors to The Book Nook -- otherwise known as Point Pleasant’s local library. According to the plaque out front, it was once a four-room schoolhouse. It seemed a lot of Point Pleasant’s buildings were reformed for the modern age, because almost everywhere you went, a small plaque out front would read  _ “This building was a __ until __” _ .

 

Dennis pushed the doors open and heard the sweet chime of the bells hanging above it. The librarian looked up and smiled. “Hi, Dennis!” she chirped.

 

“Hey, Miss Cheryl.” he replied.

 

“What can I do for you, honey?” Cheryl asked. “Need me to direct you to the locomotive section?”

 

The boy rubbed the back of his head. “Actually, I’m not here for school.” he admitted. “Do you..” Dennis tugged at the straps of his backpack. “..have any books on the supernatural?”

 

Cheryl cocked her head. “That’s an..interesting question, but yeah! They’re in the back.” She pointed behind her. Dennis nodded thankfully and headed off into the library.

 

‘Kind of odd.’ he thought. ‘I didn’t know the library HAD a supernatural section.’ He looked to the shelves on his left, then his right. He breathed deeply. He took off his backpack and tossed it on a table. Time to search.

 

As he was about to pull out a book expanding upon gremlins, he heard a soft  _ thunk. _ He turned around as he heard the soft sound of footsteps retreating from the area. “Miss Cheryl?” he called uncertainly. Nobody answered.

 

Dennis felt something begin to lodge in his throat. Something wasn’t right. He was the only one there, but he could feel someone else’s presence in the room. The air had gotten unexpectedly chilly, and the atmosphere was suffocating him.

 

When he turned back to the shelves, a book several feet away from him had been pulled halfway out. It was dark-brown with gold binding, and in gold letters read ‘ _ The Incomplete History of… _ ’

 

Dennis knit his eyebrows. It was worth a shot.

 

He pulled the book off the shelf. It read,

 

_ The Incomplete History of Supernatural Deities _

_ by Hamilton B. Rothkiss _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
**_End of Chapter Four_ **

  
  


**_A Due-North Studios Production_ **

 

**_Director: Chi Kusho_ **

 

**_Co-Producer/Creative Consultant: Fibonaccithegeek_ **

 

**_Associate Co-Producer/Motivational Specialist: CreepySarah16_ **

 

**_Story: Chi Kusho, Fibonaccithegeek_ ** **_  
_ ** **_  
_ ** ****_Characters: CreepySarah16 and Chi Kusho_

 

**_Art by Chi_ **

 

**_Starring:_ **

**_Madeleine Martin as Lilly Anderson_ **

**_Alexandra Daddario as Jillian Rothkiss_ **

**_Guest-starring Dustin Hoffman as Officer Daniels_ **

**_Also starring Tress Macneille as Lunchlady Dora and Girl 1, Olivia Holt as Hayley, Unnamed Nurse and Girls 2 and 3, Ewan Bailey as Principal Down, Julie Kavner as Ms. Glumatta, Dee Bradley Baker as Lyndon and the Worms, Pamela Hayden as Nurse Matricia, Daman Mills as Mr. D’Appel, and Dylan Riley Snyder as Dennis Whalgreen._ **

 

**_This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to characters living or dead is completely coincidental. All rights reserved to Due-North Studios._ **


End file.
